


Cleaner Wanted

by orphan_account



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: AU, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-20
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-08-09 21:00:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 57,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7817062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>To any outsider, Hyunwoo had everything that the average man could wish for: a secure position in a multi-national firm, a smart company car and a flashy apartment in the best part of Seoul.</p><p>But to him, it meant nothing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 01

To any outsider, Hyunwoo had everything that the average man could wish for: a secure position in a multi-national firm, a smart company car and a flashy apartment in the best part of Seoul.

But to him, it meant nothing. He’d gained a job in the firm simply because the president was one of his father’s golfing companions; the car consumed a lot of fuel and attracted too much attention for his liking and despite loving his apartment he dreaded going home in the evening. Home was always dark, cold and empty. On top of that, everything was covered in dust and grime: Hyunwoo worked long hours - six days a week - and had neither the time nor the energy to clean when he returned home in the evening. His only day off was taken up by grocery shopping, laundry, catching up with his mail and whatever paperwork he hadn’t managed to complete during the week. Cleaning his apartment usually ended up being put off until his meagre holiday time came around.

It was only as he perused an abandoned newspaper during his commute to work one morning (he preferred taking the bus to driving) that Hyunwoo saw the advertisement: ‘Too busy to clean? Let us do it for you! Rates negotiable.’  
The man took the newspaper with him and by the end of his lunch break he’d organised for a cleaner to go to his apartment three times each week and do his housework for him - the firm would even do laundry, which meant Hyunwoo would have a little extra time on his precious Sundays. All he had to do was pay a visit to the company, sign the contract and hand over a copy of his apartment key - the cleaner would be going to his apartment during the day, whilst he was at work.

 

Minhyuk was incredibly happy to get another cleaning job. Despite being employed with the company for two years, he’d only been given a total of four apartments and one house to clean in that space of time – two of which had been temporary contracts. Until the new job had come in, he’d been cleaning only one apartment each week. Although he liked to clean, Minhyuk hated that particular apartment. It was inhabited by a total slob, a forty-something divorcee who left food to dry on plates, piles of rubbish in random corners, bad smells in the bathroom and stains on the bed-sheets that Minhyuk really didn’t want to question the nature of. Cleaning it took the entire day, which was Minhyuk’s only comfort--it meant he got paid more.

The apartment in the new contract was in a smart-looking apartment block.  
‘The rent for a month in a place like this is probably more than my rent for the entire year,’ Minhyuk thought as he pulled up and parked outside the building. Grabbing his cleaning gear from the trunk, he made his way up to the second floor, counting along to the right apartment.  
To his delight, the apartment was in relatively good keep, mostly just dusty. He guessed that the client must be one of the city’s well-paid businessmen - well-paid to have no life, the cleaner always thought.  
Setting down his mop and bucket, he got to work.

One of the reasons Minhyuk liked cleaning was that it gave him a chance to see inside other people’s apartments. His client’s belongings always gave him insight into their lives and personalities. This new client, for instance, had several books on food, cooking, and dieting, all organised by category, which suggested to Minhyuk that the client liked food but was conscientious of his weight – he would have thought the apartment’s inhabitant was overweight if he hadn’t already emptied the laundry basket to find clothes no bigger than his own. Minhyuk felt sympathetic towards the man; it wasn’t right for someone evidently slim to think they needed to diet.  
.  
As he was dusting the bedroom, he noticed the picture frame on by the bed. It held a photograph of an aging couple, arm in arm with a youngish man. They were all smiling, yet it was the young man that Minhyuk found himself drawn to: his face was kind and open, the smile was purely cute, completely unrestrained. Even so, the cleaner didn’t miss the fact that the man’s eyes were filled with longing.  
Resuming his work, the cleaner wondered about the man in the photograph. It was obvious from their looks that the two older people were the man’s parents. But who was the man? Was he a cousin or brother of his client? Or was he the client himself?  
The question played in his mind even as he packed up his cleaning gear and left the apartment, taking care to leave the lamp in the hall switched on - he hated going home to darkness and guessed that his client would feel the same way.

 

Hyunwoo was uneasy when he first opened his apartment door to find the lamp switched on. His overactive imagination made him think he had an intruder, until his common sense kicked in and suggested that an intruder wouldn’t turn the lights on, and that the cleaner had probably left it on by mistake. At this thought, Hyunwoo found himself grateful. The house looked and smelled clean, and felt a little more homely than usual. Employing a cleaner had definitely been a good move.

 

‘Son Hyunwoo’. The name had stuck in Minhyuk’s head since the day he got the cleaning contract. He thought the name sounded nice – somehow it seemed warm and friendly.  
For three weeks, Minhyuk had cleaned the apartment--and upon each trip there he snooped a little. He’d become more curious about this man than anybody else, but couldn’t put his finger on the reason why. Everything about the apartment told him that his client was a good, fun-loving person. Why the man would work some office job that kept him so busy he couldn’t even clean his own apartment was a question he had yet to find the answer to.

Midway through the fourth week of the contract, Minhyuk was shopping for cleaning materials when he passed a florist. Flowers were something there was always an absence of in Hyunwoo’s apartment. There had been a vase of dead flowers on a windowsill before but Minhyuk had disposed of them. Since then, he’d never seen any living thing in the apartment (bar the occasional spider).  
Acting on impulse, he went into the shop.

 

It was late when Hyunwoo returned to his apartment. As per usual on the days when the cleaner came in, a light had been left on. He smiled, setting down his briefcase and inhaling the fresh, clean smell exuded by the apartment. Wandering through to the kitchen with the intention of finding a snack, Hyunwoo let out a sound of surprise. In the middle of the little kitchen table was a vase he’d forgotten he owned, and in it was a bunch of creamy white carnations. Beside the vase was a note, which he snatched up and read.  
‘Mr. Son, I hope you don’t consider this an invasion of privacy, but I thought you might enjoy these. Hope you don’t have allergies! – Min (cleaner)’  
Hyunwoo chuckled, folding the note up and pocketing it. So the cleaner had a name! What’s more, this ‘Min’ seemed more thoughtful than he had originally guessed.  
Smiling, he found a piece of paper and wrote a note in reply.

When he went to bed that night, Hyunwoo still had the echoes of a smile upon his face. He was truly touched that the cleaner had gone to the trouble of putting flowers out. He’d just have to ensure he watered them enough.

 

Minhyuk found the note that Hyunwoo had left when he was halfway through his usual cleaning of the apartment.  
‘Min,’ it read, ‘Thanks, my apartment looks much fresher with flowers~! How much do I owe you? - Hyunwoo (grateful apartment guy) P.S. Please call me Hyunwoo!’  
The cleaner giggled. His client’s note sounded cheerful. He searched his pockets for a piece of paper to write a reply onto, but found nothing but a rubber band. As a last resort the cleaner turned over the note and scrawled on the back of it: ‘Hyunwoo, you owe nothing, please consider the flowers a gift of gratitude for your patronage. - Min’  
Setting the note where his client would see it, the cleaner continued his work.

 

It hadn’t been the nicest of days for Hyunwoo. His supervisor had reprimanded the entire department for not reaching their (unrealistic) weekly target and when lunch came around he found himself taking a long-winded call from the company’s office in Tokyo. By the time it had finished, all the good food in the cafeteria had been eaten so he was left with a dry piece of bread and some overcooked noodles. He returned to his desk to be chided by a co-worker for not being there to take another call - this time from a client - and when he’d called the client back he was yelled at and berated despite his profuse apologies. Hyunwoo’s self-esteem had taken a beating and when his watch strap decided to break on the way home, it was the last straw.  
The businessman, who had been keeping a careful watch on his diet, stopped in at a cake shop on his way home.

By the time he’d reached his apartment building, he already felt guilty. He felt even worse when he unlocked his front door and remembered Min hadn’t been cleaning today. The apartment was dark, reflecting Hyunwoo’s mood.  
Flipping on the lights, he set the cake on the kitchen table and stared at it for a long time before cutting it in half. Half the cake wouldn’t be as bad as the whole thing, he tried to convince himself.  
Hyunwoo ate every bite of his half-cake with guilt; it didn’t make him feel better as he’d hoped.  
He looked longingly at the other half of the cake, then stood up and went to take a shower. Maybe the next day would be better.

 

Minhyuk found another note waiting for him when he went into Hyunwoo’s apartment to clean. He was already in a good mood - the day before he’d secured another cleaning job, this time for a house which meant double pay, and cleaning Hyunwoo’s place was always a joy more than a job. But finding a note from the client improved his mood even more.  
‘Dear Min,’ it read. ‘There is half a cake in the fridge, please take it. I feel guilty eating it alone! - Hyunwoo’  
Minhyuk chuckled softly at the note. He was right about Hyunwoo’s weight issues, though it was no laughing matter. The cleaner sympathised with his client. Checking the fridge, he found the half-cake with another note: ‘Here it is! Please, please eat it for me!’  
Giggling, Minhyuk removed it from the fridge. He was supposed to be working, but since it was almost lunchtime it wouldn’t hurt if he stopped cleaning for a few minutes to eat.  
Before he left that day, Minhyuk left another note.

“Hyunwoo, thank you for sharing your cake,” Hyunwoo read the note aloud, smiling slightly. “It was kind of you to think of me. I hope I helped lessen your guilt, though a man such as yourself should not need to have such a feeling! Hope you had a great day.”  
Hyunwoo put the note away with the others he’d received from Min, and wrote a reply.

 

‘Min, you are welcome. However I am curious to know what you mean when you say “a man such as yourself”... - Hyunwoo’  
Reading the note, the cleaner wondered if he had overstepped the mark. It wasn’t his business how Hyunwoo felt about eating cakes. He wrote a carefully thought-out response to his client’s note, apologising.

‘Hyunwoo, I apologise if I offended you, it was not my intention! By “a man such as yourself” I wished to imply that eating a cake every now and then should not be cause for concern’ (here he drew a smiley face) ‘Allow me to clarify: as you know, along with cleaning I undertake laundry duties, and through this I have of course seen your clothes. I can tell you are a slim man. The occasional cake is irrelevant to a healthy diet. ...I am probably making an idiot of myself here. I hope I have made this note clear enough! - Min (your apologetic cleaner)’

As Hyunwoo read the note, he began to understand the kind intention behind Min’s words and it warmed him: the cleaner was trying to make him feel good about himself.  
Before the cleaner’s next visit, Hyunwoo wrote him a short note to explain that he hadn’t been offended, merely curious, and he hoped the cleaner felt no discomfort through thinking he’d been angry. The note was met with a cheerful reply, apparently typical of Min.

 

From that day, their conversation through notes continued--enough so that Hyunwoo set out a notebook and pen on the kitchen table for the purpose of communicating with the cleaner. Besides work colleagues, clients, and grocery store employees, Min was the only person the businessman talked to (besides the occasional call to his parents). He felt indebted to the cleaner for this, even more-so whenever he looked at the flowers. The carnations had started to die off, but before he had the opportunity to do something about them, they’d been replaced with a bunch of rich purple-and-yellow irises and another cheerful note wishing him a good day at the office. Hyunwoo thought it was like having an invisible housewife.

He’d started to wonder what this ‘Min’ was like in real life. The cleaner’s words always seemed well thought-out, almost delicate, which caused Hyunwoo to imagine a petite, pleasant woman with a smiling face. Judging from their paper-conversation, Min had the type of character that the businessman was attracted to.  
It was a pity, he thought, that he didn’t like women. But perhaps Min could become a good friend.

 

Unlike Hyunwoo’s (somewhat inaccurate) thoughts of what Minhyuk looked like, the cleaner was building a firm idea of his client’s looks and interests. He’d guessed that if the kind, handsome man in the photograph in Hyunwoo’s bedroom wasn’t the businessman, then it must be his client’s brother--in which case Hyunwoo would bear a resemblance to the man in the picture. The cookery and dieting books were a huge clue that his client was insecure about his weight but enjoyed food, and the photographs dotted around the apartment walls told him that Hyunwoo cared about his family and friends. Minhyuk guessed that his client must miss them; the fact he’d needed to employ a cleaner in the first place told him that Hyunwoo had little spare time outside of his job which would make it hard for him to spend quality time with people.

The season was changing and whilst Minhyuk was searching for where Hyunwoo kept bedclothes more suited to winter, he discovered other clues to his client’s personality.  
Sitting on a shelf in a cupboard, the cleaner found old jazz records, a music box, and a rather dusty stack of games. The dust indicated that they’d not been moved for a while and none of these things looked new--Minhyuk smiled as he added ‘fine musical taste’ and ‘gamer’ to his mental description of Hyunwoo.

As he arranged a bouquet of lilies to replace the wilting irises, Minhyuk realised he was wandering into dangerous territory. The more he surmised about Hyunwoo, he saw the businessman as having more attributes of - cheesy as it seemed - the man of his dreams. He’d never imagined that such a person could exist, and Minhyuk wanted more and more desperately to meet this man for real.


	2. 02

A high-pitched beeping tore through Hyunwoo’s consciousness. Head pounding, the businessman sat up and turned off the alarm. Then wished he hadn’t done so as the world was spinning. He lay down again, snuggling under the blankets and feeling cold despite the fact he was sweating.  
The businessman shivered, and after a moment tried to get out of bed--only to fall back amongst the sheets, room still spinning. He groaned to himself. There was no way he could go to work like this. Wriggling back beneath the sheets, Hyunwoo grabbed the phone from the nightstand and called his office.  
After the call was made, he closed his eyes and tried to get back to sleep.

 

He awoke sometime during the afternoon, to the sound of someone moving about his apartment. He heard a clink of cutlery and sat up slowly, fearful that the dizziness would return. Was someone stealing his stuff?  
The businessman eased himself from the bed and padded towards the kitchen.  
When he neared the room and looked through the door, he saw a tall, slender, young man standing at the sink.  
What was this guy doing in his apartment?!  
Hyunwoo stumbled into the kitchen. “What-”  
The slim man jumped at the other’s voice, wet fingers slipping on the glass he was holding. Both men lurched forward to grab it to no avail. The glass smashed on the floor.  
“Shit!” The man swore. “Oh, I’m sorry! I’ll clear it up and pay for a replacement!”  
Hyunwoo, feeling dizzy again, clutched the edge of the counter and blinked at the other man. Only now did he fully take in the sink of soapy water, the apron tied around the waist of the ‘intruder’, and the box of cleaning implements in the corner.  
“...You’re the cleaner?” Hyunwoo watched blearily as the other man transferred the broken glass to the bin.  
“Yes. I’m Minhyuk,” the cleaner bowed. “I’m really sorry about the glass.”  
Minhyuk…   
“Don’t worry about it,” Hyunwoo reassured him. He smiled weakly. “Sorry I made you jump. I thought someone had broken in or something. ...After our conversations in the notebook it’s good to meet you...” he trailed off, looking down at his dishevelled pyjamas and guessing he looked a right mess.  
Minhyuk smiled. His questions about his client’s appearance had been answered: this was Hyunwoo that stood before him--and he looked even more handsome in real life than in the photograph. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Hyunwoo-ssi,” he nodded, looking closely at the other man. “Forgive me, are you sick? Did I disturb you?”  
“I’ll be alright,” Hyunwoo gave a brave smile. “It’s just a little vertigo.”  
“Would you like me to make you some soup?” Minhyuk offered. He wished to make amends for the broken glass and their less than smooth first meeting. Even more so, he wanted Hyunwoo to like him.  
“I couldn’t be a trouble to you,” Hyunwoo shook his head. “I’ll go back to bed and get out of your way, Minhyuk.” He took a step away from the counter only to wobble dangerously, the world spinning again. A skinny arm wrapped around his waist and the businessman looked at Minhyuk hazily.  
“It isn’t any trouble, Hyunwoo-ssi,” the cleaner said softly. “We’ll get you back to your bed and I’ll make you some soup just like my mother used to make me when I was sick.”  
“But-”  
“No extra charge,” Minhyuk added as he helped the taller man to his bedroom. “I want to do this for you, Mr. Son.”  
Hyunwoo nodded as he climbed into bed, eyes half-closed. “Just Hyunwoo, please,” he insisted quietly, burrowing under the duvet.  
The cleaner smiled softly. This man was so lovely and cute! “I’ll get started on the soup.”

Minhyuk ended up having to go to a nearby convenience store to buy everything for the meal. Once he’d returned to Hyunwoo’s apartment his client was asleep, so he set to work in the kitchen and finished his cleaning whilst the soup cooked.

“Hyunwoo?”  
The businessman opened one eye to see Minhyuk standing in the doorway, a tray in his hands upon. Blinking, Hyunwoo eased himself into a sitting position.  
“Food’s ready,” the cleaner said.  
As Minhyuk neared the bed, Hyunwoo took in the man’s shiny, silver hair and the way his bangs flopped into his face, half-covering the cleaner’s soft eyes.  
Minhyuk set the tray on the bed and the businessman saw it held a bowl of soup and a cup of tea. Hyunwoo’s stomach rumbled just looking at it, and he giggled in embarrassment.  
“It looks nice... Thank you.”  
“I hope you enjoy it,” Minhyuk smiled. “I’ve finished cleaning for the day, so I’ll leave you in peace. Hope you get better soon.”  
Hyunwoo nodded. Of course, the cleaner would have other people’s apartments to tidy as well. “Thank you, very much...”  
It was only when the silver blonde had left, and Hyunwoo had taken a mouthful of his delicious soup, that the businessman realised he wouldn’t have minded if Minhyuk had stayed a little longer.

 

Minhyuk hummed to himself as he walked around the supermarket. He’d finally met Hyunwoo. After being curious about the man for so long, and hadn’t been disappointed. His client - though unwell - had been cute and friendly.  
The problem was that now he’d met the other man, he already hungered to see him again.

 

Hyunwoo, too, was hoping for another meeting. Having eaten his fill of soup, taken a careful shower and going back to bed, he found himself thinking of the cleaner as he dozed off again. Minhyuk was attractive, and more importantly he was far from being the woman Hyunwoo believed him to be! The businessman wondered if he would be remotely interested in a date. He guessed the chances of that were pretty slim. In Hyunwoo’s experience all the attractive guys with nice personalities were straight or - even worse - married. Needless to say, Hyunwoo hadn’t managed to have many boyfriends. It wasn’t that he was picky; he simply didn’t want to end up with someone for the sake of being with them. This meant he had to look twice as hard for the perfect guy.  
Yet now it looked as though perfection had fallen into his life completely by accident!

When he fell asleep, he dreamt of Minhyuk. In the dream, he returned home to find the cleaner vacuuming the bedroom. Hyunwoo hadn’t thought anything of it when he circled his arms around the cleaner’s waist and nipped at the other’s neck. Minhyuk had shivered in his arms. In the dream, it wasn’t long before the two of them were letting out heated sighs.

 

Minhyuk awoke with an impassioned moan. Breathing heavily, he stared up into the darkness, beads of sweat on his forehead and erection straining against the fabric of his pyjamas.  
The cleaner sighed to himself in exhilaration, sliding a hand into his pants. What a dream: Hyunwoo had been in his flat and had crawled into his bed with a predatory growl...  
It was almost criminal to think of his client in such a way but after that dream, he couldn’t help it. In his subconscious, Hyunwoo had made one hell of an alpha.

 

Minhyuk was disappointed when he went to clean Hyunwoo’s apartment a few days later--there was no sign of the man: obviously he’d recovered from his sickness and gone to work as usual. Although the cleaner was happy to know his client was in good health again, he’d been hoping to see him once more. On the other hand, considering his dreams of late, Minhyuk wasn’t sure if he could face the businessman without blushing.  
When he went into the kitchen, the cleaner found Hyunwoo had left him a note, thanking him for the soup and proclaiming that he wanted to do something for him in return.  
Minhyuk wrote a reply to say he expected nothing in return. In a moment of courage before he left the businessman’s apartment, he added his phone number to the note and exited the building before he decided better of it.

 

Despite seeing the number clearly (and saving it carefully to the memory of his mobile phone) Hyunwoo didn’t call the cleaner. He wanted to, but couldn’t figure out an excuse for calling him--he could hardly phone Minhyuk ‘just to chat’ after all. They weren’t close enough friends for that, if he could consider them to be anything more than acquaintances.  
So the businessman resigned himself to writing a note back for the other man to find, ensuring he included his own phone number in the hope Minhyuk would end up calling him for some reason. In his note, he still insisted upon doing something for the cleaner to thank him for making the soup. It was only right--and Hyunwoo had been brought up to give generously to those he owed something.  
Had he known much about Minhyuk, he would have gone out and bought him a gift. Unfortunately he knew little other than the fact the cleaner was male, around his age, and gorgeous--which didn’t give him much to work on.

The next day, the businessman had a rare day off. He’d been looking forward to it for ages--he would drive to his parents’ home to pick them up and the three of them would spend the day together, visiting a few shrines and parks. It would be a day of simple pleasures.  
As he was leaving, the phone rang.  
‘I hope it’s not the boss calling me in to cover for someone,’ he thought to himself, racing to answer it.  
“Hello?”  
“Hyunwoo sweetie? It’s Mum.”  
The businessman smiled at the sound of his mother’s voice. “Mum, I was just leaving to collect you and Dad!” he said cheerily.  
His mother sighed. “Hyunwoo, I know you’ve been looking forward to this, but we’ll need to postpone to another day...” she told him regretfully.  
“Oh,” Hyunwoo sat down on his barely-used sofa. It wasn’t like his parents to cancel like this--they always said they’d like to see more of him. “Is everything okay?”  
“It’s your father,” the woman explained. “He’s unwell.”  
Hyunwoo leaned forward in his seat, worried. “Is Dad alright? Has he seen a doctor?”  
“Everything will be fine, sweetheart,” his mother reassured him. “The doctor has seen him, we were told that it’s a viral infection but it should wear off in a few days.”  
The businessman absorbed this. “There are a lot of viruses and colds around at the moment, I suppose,” he stated. “I was off work with a cold last week-”  
“Hyunwoo, you didn’t tell us!” the woman reproached her son.  
“I’m okay Mum,” he chuckled. “I was off for a day but I’m perfectly well now. Minhyuk made me soup which helped a lot!” he said cheerfully.  
“Minhyuk? Has my little boy found himself someone at last?” The grin in his mother’s voice made him cringe.  
He laughed. “No, Mum. He’s my cleaner. He does a really good job, too.”  
“Are you sure he’s only a cleaner?” From the sound of her voice, the man could tell his mother was smirking.  
“Well he does laundry too,” Hyunwoo said, trying to avoid his mother’s prying. He was too old to talk with his mum about boys.  
“I’m sure he does,” Hyunwoo’s mother chuckled. “Well, bring him to meet your father and I when we reorganise our little trip!”  
“Mum-”  
“Dad is calling for me sweetie, I need to tend to him,” the woman cut in. “Let us know when you have another day off and we’ll go to the shrines then.”  
“Okay Mum...”  
“We both love you, darling. Do good for yourself,” his mother said seriously.  
“Love you too. Take care, both of you.”

Hyunwoo hung up, defeated. His mother had set in her mind that Minhyuk was something special to him and now she seemed determined to meet the cleaner.  
He sat back on the sofa and let out a sigh. Of course Minhyuk was special, he made the apartment clean and put a little light into the businessman’s life: Hyunwoo had been happier since he and Minhyuk started to exchange notes.  
The businessman contemplated the phone. Perhaps he could call the cleaner and invite him to hang out today? Although he would be working, so he wouldn’t be able to.  
‘Well,’ thought Hyunwoo, ‘I could invite him for drinks in the evening.’  
Just as he was retrieving his phone, there was a sound at the front door. A moment later the cleaner walked in.

Minhyuk stopped when he saw the businessman. “Oh, hello...!” he said in surprise.  
“Minhyuk, hi,” Hyunwoo smiled a little. It seemed weird that the man should walk in at the very moment he was going to call him! “I was just about to phone you!” he said with a chuckle.  
The cleaner looked confused. He was sure Hyunwoo had told him he had plans today. “You were? I thought you were out with your parents today...”  
Nodding, Hyunwoo set the phone down. “I was meant to be. My mother called a few minutes ago to cancel; father is unwell and can’t go out today,” he pouted a little, the disappointment starting to settle in.  
“I’m sorry. You were looking forward to it, weren’t you...” Minhyuk said sympathetically. “Would you like me to make some tea?”  
The businessman smiled faintly at the apologetic note in the taller man’s voice--Minhyuk spoke as though it were all his fault! “You do enough for me in my home as it is…” he looked up at the other. “I’ll make some tea, if you’ll sit and drink it with me?”  
The cleaner felt a bit doubtful. He had a couple of other places to clean today as well as Hyunwoo’s apartment and he could hardly charge for time spent sitting around drinking tea. But his client looked so hopeful that he found himself melting a little at the sight.  
“Alright. I guess I can take my break,” he decided. Realistically it was hours too early for him to stop for lunch; however the thought of getting some time with Hyunwoo made him more than willing to stop right there and then.  
Hyunwoo’s face lit up with a smile. “I’ll go and boil the water. Please, sit down!”  
Settling on the sofa, Minhyuk leaned back and watched the taller man move around in his kitchen. When he’d taken on the contract, he’d never imagined he would be sitting down whilst his client ran around making tea. Hyunwoo was so different from the other people he’d worked for. It wasn’t a case of the businessman being warmer or more kindly - though both attributes certainly fitted him - Minhyuk just felt more at ease around him. His client didn’t seem to judge him or see him as anything less than his equal. Rather than treating him as an employee, Hyunwoo treated him like a friend.

The two men spent almost an hour drinking tea and chatting. Hyunwoo was more than happy to finally discover more about Minhyuk, including the fact that like himself, the slim man had a passion for music and computer games--and if his hunch was correct, Minhyuk was quite partial to food, too. The businessman smiled inwardly as he listened to the cleaner talking about his high school band. Minhyuk seemed more and more like the person he had been hoping to find.  
The silver blonde was enjoying their conversation too. Hyunwoo was a jovial man; his smile was open and genuine, he listened intently and talked in the most entertaining manner.  
It was only when Minhyuk glanced at the clock as he was talking that he realised how long they’d been sitting there.  
“--I’m so sorry, I should be cleaning your apartment!” he apologised, bowing. “In fact, I should have finished it by now!” he added, picking up their empty teacups.  
Hyunwoo chuckled at how flustered the cleaner had become. Seeing Minhyuk like this reminded him of himself when he was late for work.  
“I shouldn’t have kept you talking for so long,” he smiled, standing up. “I’ll help with the cleaning; it shouldn’t take so long if there are two of us.”  
“But I’m here so you don’t have to clean,” Minhyuk insisted.  
The businessman shook his head. “It’s my apartment, Minhyuk. I should at least clean a little. Besides, you’ll still get paid the usual amount.”  
Minhyuk turned red. Did Hyunwoo think he was only worrying about money? Sure, he was rather in need of the money he earned but he didn’t mind losing a few won in lieu of having a conversation with his client. “Please Hyunwoo, it’s not about the money...” he began.  
“Then let me help,” Hyunwoo smiled again and the decision was made.

The two of them worked fast, and by the time the businessman’s apartment was clean, Minhyuk had almost made up for lost time.  
Hyunwoo fell quiet as the cleaner packed up his things. He’d enjoyed cleaning alongside the taller man; they’d talked more as they’d cleaned and tidied. Yet Minhyuk had to go on to clean other people’s abodes, and he would have to go back to bumming around his apartment, alone.  
The businessman’s quietness hadn’t escaped Minhyuk’s notice, and as he picked up his things he looked back at his client.  
“Have a good day, Hyunwoo,” he said sincerely. The shorter man looked up and Minhyuk saw the same longing he’d noticed in that one photo, the very first day he’d been in the apartment.  
“You too, Minhyuk. Seems cleaning can be pretty fun,” the smile that graced Hyunwoo’s lips wasn’t all that convincing.  
“...If it isn’t too forward of me, you’re welcome to come along, if you want. You don’t have to clean but a little company would be nice,” Minhyuk gave a hopeful smile.  
His client grinned. “I don’t mind cleaning!” he exclaimed, already going to the door for his shoes and jacket. “This will be great! Thank you, Minhyuk!”  
A little amused at the enthusiasm, the cleaner led the way down to his car.

 

“So...” Hyunwoo began as he shook out a duster. “Any girlfriend to speak of?” It was quite a forward question to ask, but it had been burning in his mind from the day he and Minhyuk had met face to face for the first time.  
Up to the elbows in soapy water, the cleaner shook his head. “No. No girlfriends.”  
“No time?” the businessman stood on his toes to reach up and dust off the kitchen shelves.  
Minhyuk considered how to answer this. “I wouldn’t say I had no time for girlfriends. I just don’t want one.” There. It seemed the perfect non-committal answer. The cleaner had an inkling that his client wasn’t all that interested in girls either, but until he was surer of that he didn’t plan to reveal all.  
“Poor girls,” Hyunwoo smirked a little. No straight man alive would say they didn’t want a girlfriend--would they? “You don’t find them attractive, then.”  
Minhyuk looked sharply at the taller man, who gazed back innocently. “I don’t want a girlfriend,” he reiterated, rinsing a plate. “I’m not interested.”  
Hyunwoo decided let the matter drop. Either Minhyuk didn’t like girls or he honestly didn’t want a girlfriend at the moment. The businessman silently vowed to pry into this more later on.  
As he stepped back from the shelves, he didn’t notice Minhyuk’s bucket was so close behind him until it was too late. Minhyuk turned from the sink just in time to see Hyunwoo trip, upset the bucket, and stumble towards him.  
A split-second later, the cleaner found himself crushed between the sink and a warm, dark-eyed Hyunwoo.


	3. 03

Hyunwoo sucked in his breath, heart thudding in his chest. A thrill ran through him as he blinked down at Minhyuk, taking in the other’s features. Up close, those full lips looked suppler than ever; and his clear skin seemed like smooth alabaster. His eyes - warm and chocolate coloured - gazed back at him through soft silver blonde hair--and Minhyuk’s body felt so warm and comfortable pressed up against the taller man’s own.  
“Are you okay?” The cleaner uttered, trying to veil the breathlessness in his voice.  
The businessman blinked again and pulled away. “I’m so clumsy!” he laughed, heart still pounding. “I’ll fall over my own two feet one day!”  
“So long as you didn’t hurt yourself...” Minhyuk replied with a small smile. Having the other pressed against him in such a way had felt nice.  
The cleaner mentally shook himself and turned back to the sink.

Quietly, Hyunwoo took up a bottle of cleaning spray and started to wipe down the kitchen surfaces. This was certainly turning out to be an unusual day. It was the first time he’d found himself cleaning someone else’s house - and it had been a couple of years since he’d last felt such a chill of delight at being pressed up against another man. He glanced at the cleaner, smiling to himself. Minhyuk’s cheeks were very slightly pink and his lips parted as he concentrated on his task. The tall man supposed the cleaner was embarrassed from their being so close earlier and chided himself for not pulling back sooner. But he’d liked the feeling it gave him, as if a part of himself he didn’t realise was missing was finally slotting into place. Hyunwoo could only wonder how Minhyuk had felt.

The blonde could feel Hyunwoo’s eyes on him. Rather than look back he concentrated harder on his work, playing coy. He wanted his client--that was for certain. It was just a case of figuring out how to seduce him. Provided, of course, that the other actually liked men and wasn’t just curious like so many others he’d encountered in the past.  
For a while Minhyuk zoned out, concentrating on nothing other than his cleaning. Having dried the crockery he put it all away and got started on the vacuuming.

 

“Minhyuk,” Hyunwoo’s voice was barely audible over the drone of the vacuum cleaner so the slim man didn’t hear until the businessman was right behind him.  
“Minhyuk.” This time Hyunwoo reached out, gently touching the other’s arm. The cleaner hadn’t spoken to him since their little collision earlier and he was beginning to wonder if he was offended. If so, he wanted to apologise.  
Switching off the vacuum, Minhyuk turned to him. “Pardon?”  
“Ah...” Hyunwoo met the cleaner’s serene eyes. He’d expected the other man to look grumpy or troubled. “I finished the dusting. What else is there to do?”  
Minhyuk shook his head and smiled. “That’s it for today.” With that, he turned on the vacuum once again.  
At loss for anything else to do, Hyunwoo started to pack away the cleaning gear.

 

“Today was fun. Thanks for inviting me,” the businessman smiled. He was in the process of getting out of Minhyuk’s car but something made him hold back. He really had enjoyed going around apartments with the cleaner and hadn’t even realised they’d missed lunch until Minhyuk commented on being hungry.  
The blonde smiled back at his client. “I enjoyed it too, Hyunwoo. Thank you for coming along.”  
Hyunwoo nodded. “Hope we hang out again sometime. Without cleaning,” he grinned a little.  
This made Minhyuk chuckle. “I’d really like that.”  
“Well... bye for now,” Hyunwoo said, finally getting out of the car.  
The cleaner smiled again. “Bye!”  
Hyunwoo waved as Minhyuk drove away, and then returned to his apartment. Though it was dark - neither of them had thought to leave a light on - the businessman didn’t find it lonely or depressing at all.  
He couldn’t say he was content, but he’d had a great day with Minhyuk--and he couldn’t help feeling a little excited at the prospect of meeting him again.

Since he’d had a physically busy day, Hyunwoo decided to be lazy with dinner and order in some food. Flopping onto the sofa he dialed a local takeout, made an order, and relaxed back thinking about everything he’d have to do at work tomorrow.  
It was the only problem with having a day off: he’d go back to a big pile of papers in his in-tray, a huge number of emails to reply to, and undoubtedly a bunch of in-house issues to deal with. Hyunwoo wondered if Minhyuk had loads of work to catch up on if he ever took a day off. Cleaning was so different to office-work...  
As he waited for his food to be delivered, the businessman considered he could have invited Minhyuk to eat with him.  
‘I’ll do it another day,’ he told himself. Another day, when he had the courage.

 

Two weeks passed by and everything had returned to normal. Hyunwoo set off for work every morning, being sure to leave a note to say hello to Minhyuk on the days the cleaner was scheduled to come in. Feeling braver since they chatted, the businessman started to ask Minhyuk questions - sometimes serious, sometimes more light-hearted or silly ones, such as whether he preferred white or brown bread.  
Minhyuk never failed to give an answer.

The cleaner liked being asked these questions. When conversing through notes his client didn’t need to feign politeness or interest in him, which suggested Hyunwoo was genuinely interested--if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have bothered writing them down in the first place. Hyunwoo had asked him about his family, the place where he’d grown up, and a number of his favourite things - to mention but a few of the questions.  
In return, Minhyuk answered the questions and asked one of his own - often simply reflecting his client’s original question back at him with, ‘how about you?’

It was when he flicked back through the notebook that Minhyuk realised that his client had written his number, several pages before. He grinned to himself, programming it into his phone. He couldn’t understand how he’d not noticed until now. At least it gave him that little extra means of contacting the businessman. Minhyuk wasn’t one to use the phone frequently but he liked to have some way of connecting with people.

 

‘Why aren’t you interested in having a girlfriend?’ The words seemed sinful to Hyunwoo as he scribed them upon the page. He’d been unsure about asking ever since his conversation with Minhyuk in the kitchen of one of the cleaner’s other clients. Now the mild interest had turned to burning curiosity, and the businessman hoped to discover a proper answer before his mind decided upon an explanation for itself. After all, he couldn’t just assume that the other man didn’t like women, nor could he assume Minhyuk had any major hang-ups about his body or commitment issues that made him refrain from entering into a relationship--all possibilities he’d considered.  
Feeling bad for even asking, Hyunwoo added beneath the question, ‘You don’t have to reply if you don’t want to.’

Seeing the words on the page made Minhyuk feel cold. Hyunwoo hadn’t mentioned girls for a few weeks: he’d been under the impression that his client wasn’t going to ask about girlfriends again. The cleaner reflected that it had probably been wishful thinking.  
He sighed and sat down at the kitchen table, staring at the notebook. How could he reply to such a blunt question? It wasn’t as though he could just write, ‘I’m gay,’ underneath; ‘I don’t like girls’ wouldn’t be any better. At the same time, he didn’t want to make Hyunwoo think he didn’t want a relationship at all; he simply wanted to be more subtle about it.  
Eventually the cleaner stood up again and started work. He decided clean the apartment from top to bottom, since he hadn’t done that in a while. Hyunwoo’s apartment was the last on his schedule for the day so cleaning so much wouldn’t hold him up. Whilst generally clean, the apartment was starting to look a little dusty in some harder-to-reach places.  
By the time he’d finished, the cleaner had worked out an answer to Hyunwoo’s question.

‘Many people in this world are desperate to have someone, to be in a relationship. They are so desperate that they would be with anyone, as long as they could introduce them as, ‘my boyfriend so-and-so’ or ‘my girlfriend such-and-such’.  
I do not wish to end up with one of these people--or being one of these people.  
There is no crime in waiting for the right person to come along: someone with similar values and ideals, someone with whom I can share interests. Even having found that person, it might not be the right time to enter into anything more than friendship. They might not be ready. I might not be ready. I feel that relationships should not be rushed; they should be allowed to move at their own pace whilst the two people discover more about each other.  
Therefore, I am waiting. How about you?’  
Of course, Minhyuk didn’t mention the fact that he was working for the very person he’d like to be with. First he wanted to see what Hyunwoo wrote back.

 

Hyunwoo was fascinated by the cleaner’s reply. Minhyuk was a deep thinker; it seemed he’d really considered things before answering. It would be more difficult, however, for the businessman to reply to Minhyuk. The cleaner had formed such an eloquent response to the question that Hyunwoo had problems thinking up a good excuse himself.  
At length, he chose to tell the truth.  
‘I like someone,’ he wrote carefully. ‘However I’m unsure if this person is interested in me.’  
On a new line he wrote, ‘Women are neither interested nor interesting--except for my mother!’ After that, he drew a smiley face.  
It was a little vague and didn’t really answer the question, but it would suffice.

 

Minhyuk found Hyunwoo’s answer amusing. He was almost confirmed in his belief that the businessman wasn’t attracted to women: the cleaner could only be completely sure by asking Hyunwoo outright.  
But he wasn’t going to do that. It would be impolite and if he was wrong - despite Hyunwoo seeming like a reasonable person - Minhyuk could lose his job.  
So he’d coax Hyunwoo into telling him.  
Picking up the pen, Minhyuk wrote a reply, incorporating a new question.

 

‘If you like somebody, perhaps you ought to tell them. What is this person like?  
To be honest, I like somebody too... I met them through work, completely by accident and I think we were destined to meet!’  
The cleaner’s note gave Hyunwoo butterflies. Surely Minhyuk couldn’t be referring to him! After all, the two of them had met by chance. If Hyunwoo hadn’t come down with that cold and stayed at home on the same day as the cleaner was there, they might never have met. In fact, if some unknown person hadn’t left their newspaper behind on the train, Hyunwoo would never have read it and seen the cleaning agency’s advertisement in the first place.

The businessman smiled to himself; he was being ridiculous. Minhyuk could just as well have meant somebody else who worked for the cleaning company. What’s more, if he was talking of someone he cleaned for, he could be referring to anybody in the number of apartments and houses he cleaned! He could even be referring to somebody that lived in the same building as one of his clients, or a relative, or friend...  
His mind running away with him, Hyunwoo decided that Minhyuk simply couldn’t have meant him. Sitting down, he replied to the cleaner, deciding yet again that honesty - within limits - was the best policy. Just because he was honest didn’t mean he had to tell the whole truth.  
‘The person I like is very attractive! I had spoken to them before we met and they seem like fun. We’ve only spent a few hours together but I felt excitement when we were together!’ Hyunwoo hesitated over writing the next line, before telling himself he was being stupid and Minhyuk would never be able to guess from a simple sentence or two:  
‘Coincidentally, I met the person I like by accident, too! Isn’t fate strange!’

 

Minhyuk didn’t respond to Hyunwoo’s note other than, ‘She sounds like a very nice person,’ and despite the cleaner having purposefully pretended to assume Hyunwoo was writing about a woman, his client didn’t make any indication to correct him. The cleaner cursed a little over this; he’d hoped Hyunwoo would tell him that he wasn’t talking about a woman--as he was sure the businessman wasn’t.  
Minhyuk would simply keep trying to catch Hyunwoo out.

 

For a few days, Hyunwoo completely forgot about his note-conversations with Minhyuk. At the office, everyone’s workload seemed to have trebled and what with extra meetings, last-minute video-conferences and trips out to see clients, and couldn’t tell if he was coming or going. He worked late, stopped to eat dinner on the way home, and went back to his apartment only to wash, sleep, and change. After a week and a half of working like this, he was exhausted and desperately looking forward to the weekend.  
Therefore it wasn’t a surprise to the businessman when he awoke one day to realise he’d slept through his alarm. It was only by fifteen minutes but with Hyunwoo’s busy schedule that was the difference between getting to work on time and being late.

He only noticed the note left by Minhyuk as he was rushing through the kitchen with his briefcase.  
‘Are you alright, Hyunwoo? I hope I’m not being too forward but it seems you haven’t been home much recently. Are you busy with the person you like?’  
A glance at the calendar told Hyunwoo that Minhyuk would be cleaning today; he didn’t want to offend the man by not replying--and who knows how many days that note had been waiting for a response in the first place!  
Grabbing a pen, Hyunwoo scrawled an answer and ran out of the apartment on his way to work.

 

‘I’m fine, very busy at the office! Have barely had a chance to sleep or eat and I haven’t seen him for weeks! Sorry to worry you Minhyuk!’  
“BINGO.” Minhyuk grinned at Hyunwoo’s note. The businessman’s handwriting was rushed; it was evident that he’d been in a hurry when he replied. In his haste, Hyunwoo had failed to conceal something important. He’d written ‘him’. Not ‘her’. Minhyuk had the proof he was after.  
Still grinning to himself, he wrote back: ‘I am relieved you’re alright, Hyunwoo. I haven’t seen the man I like for a while either.’

The cleaner had brought fresh flowers for Hyunwoo’s apartment, this time a mixture of yellow and red tulips. Upon seeing them in the florist he’d thought them akin to his client. Minhyuk found beauty in their simple, smoothly-curved petals just as he saw beauty in the taller man’s rounded, soft-looking cheeks and sincere smile.  
It was as he was arranging these flowers that the doorbell rang.  
Minhyuk frowned slightly, guessing it was the postman: although there were mailboxes in the foyer, he supposed anything too big for the box was delivered straight to the apartment. If so, it wouldn’t do for Hyunwoo to miss a package.  
Leaving his task unfinished, Minhyuk went to answer the door.

A mature woman stood in the hallway, suitcase at her feet. Minhyuk blinked, taking a moment to recognise her.  
“You must be Minhyuk,” the woman spoke up before the cleaner could say anything, scrutinizing him. “Are you going to let me in?”


	4. 04

“The place looks nice,” Mrs. Son commented approvingly as she walked through the apartment, having abandoned her suitcase inside the doorway. “You’re doing a wonderful job.”  
Minhyuk followed Hyunwoo’s mother inside, struck dumb by the fact she knew about him. He’d never imagined that his client would have spoken of him to his mother!  
“Forgive me, I’m Son Hyewon,” the woman smiled.  
“Lee Minhyuk,” the cleaner bowed.  
Hyewon nodded to herself. “Lee Minhyuk... Good name.”  
Noticing the half-arranged flowers on the kitchen table, she drew closer. Minhyuk followed hastily, picked up the notebook he and Hyunwoo conversed in, closing it and setting it aside, trying to make the motion look natural. He didn’t particularly want the newcomer to read through it.  
“You bought flowers for my little boy?” the woman asked.  
Minhyuk could have sworn there was a tiny smirk at the corner of her mouth. “It--it makes the apartment look brighter.”  
“I think so too.” Hyewon smiled, picking up one of the flowers and running her fingertips along the petals. “Tulips...These always remind me of Hyunwoo.”  
This made Minhyuk grin. “That’s why I bought these; when I saw them, I thought of him.” He wasn’t going to explain any further than that.  
Mrs. Son held out the flower. “Let’s arrange them really nicely for our sweet little Hyunwoo.”  
As Minhyuk took the bloom from her hand, he felt as though he’d accepted some kind of unspoken agreement.

 

“Right, my work is finished for the day,” the cleaner stated, removing his apron. He smiled politely at Hyunwoo’s mother. She’d spent all her time there following him, asking questions, and helping. Minhyuk could see where Hyunwoo got some of his personality traits from. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”  
“Surely you aren’t going already?” Hyewon’s eyes widened in surprise. “Won’t you stay for dinner? I plan to cook one of Hyunwoo’s favourite dishes!”  
The cleaner smiled again. “Thank you. I shall, if I would not be a bother. But I’d better put my stuff in the car first...”  
“You do that and I’ll put the kettle on. We can have a cup of tea and a nice chat before Hyunwoo comes home!” the woman replied cheerfully.  
“Thank you, Mrs. Son,” Minhyuk nodded, heading towards the door.  
“Minhyuk,” Hyewon giggled and caught up with him, hugging his arm and looking up at him with eyes that sparkled in amusement. “Call me Mum.”

 

Hyunwoo was utterly stunned to reach home at the end of the day and find his mother there, sitting on the sofa with Minhyuk. The two of them were talking and giggling together as though they were best friends, and photographs were spread across the coffee table.  
“...and this is what Dad and I call our little boy’s centrefold pose...”  
The businessman shrieked as he heard this, diving for the photograph his mother was holding out to Minhyuk and plucking it from her fingers, rolling across the carpet and hiding it against his chest. “Mum!”  
Hyewon giggled. “Welcome home, Hyunwoo-sweetie!”  
Beside her, Minhyuk gave a little wave, a smile enhancing his already attractive features. He’d seen the photograph for a few seconds before his client had snatched it away: it had depicted a young Hyunwoo of only two or three years old, standing naked in a paddling pool, a look of happiness on his face--obviously not the kind of photo he would want people to see!  
“Mum~!” Hyunwoo whined. “What are you here for? And why were you showing this picture to Minhyuk?” his face scrunched up as he groaned and the cleaner could only think about how the businessman had never lost his cuteness even in his progression to adulthood.  
“Am I not allowed to visit my favourite eldest son? Or share memories with my new friend?”  
Hyunwoo groaned inwardly. He knew why his mother had come to visit--she was going to interfere.  
“And why haven’t you greeted the lovely Minhyuk?” Hyewon nagged mildly, getting to her feet.  
The businessman rolled his eyes a little, but smiled at the cleaner. “It’s nice to see you again, Minhyuk.”  
The taller man smiled back and nodded. “You too, Hyunwoo.”  
“I invited Minhyuk for dinner,” she told her son.  
For a moment, Hyunwoo entertained a thought of Minhyuk bent across the kitchen table. It was quite a pretty picture. “Great~” he replied, trying to suppress the idea--he could barely think those things in the presence of his mother! “...I think I need to go grocery shopping first,” he said, realising he’d not done so for a week.  
“No need!” Hyewon grinned. “I took the liberty of doing it before I came here; I have everything.”  
“What’s for dinner, then?” the businessman asked curiously.  
His mother smiled triumphantly, winding her arms around her son and looking up at him. “Mixed rice and bulgogi.”  
Delighted, Hyunwoo hugged his mother. “I love you Mum.”  
“You boys just sit down and relax,” Hyewon patted the businessman’s back and gave him a little push towards the sofa.

“Sorry about her,” Hyunwoo said quietly once his mother was out of earshot. “She’s a little...”  
“Full-on?” Minhyuk smiled. “I like her. She’s lovely.” He hadn’t yet worked out why Hyewon told him to call her Mum, but the cleaner was still enjoying her company (and the little stories she’d told him about her son).  
“So long as she didn’t push you into staying. I hope you didn’t have any other plans,” the businessman commented worriedly.  
“None at all. You don’t mind me being here, do you?”  
Hyunwoo chided himself at the uncertain tone in Minhyuk’s voice. “Of course not. I was going to invite you over sometime myself; I’ve just been so busy recently...”  
The taller man nodded. “I saw your note. How was work today?”  
“Better,” Hyunwoo sighed. “I was nearly late, but there was so little to do I sat twiddling my thumbs most of the day. It was boring, but a real relief to be past the busy period!”  
“I’m sure it was,” Minhyuk raised an eyebrow, studying his client. “...you look tired, Hyunwoo...” he said softly.  
The taller man pursed his lips slightly and nodded. “I haven’t had much time to rest over the past couple of weeks,” he admitted, resting his head against the back of the couch and closing his eyes. “I’m so grateful that I have you and don’t have to worry about all those chores anymore. Last year I was almost sick from exhaustion at one point: worked all day, did chores and grocery shopping in the evening, washed at night then slept a few hours and went to work again in the morning...”  
“Sounds hard,” the cleaner agreed. “But you can rely on me, Hyunwoo. I--” he stopped when he felt a gradual pressure against his side.  
Hyunwoo had fallen asleep.  
With little else to do, Minhyuk sat there quietly, listening to the businessman’s soft, steady breathing and the sound of Hyewon moving about the kitchen. He found himself watching Hyunwoo. He looked completely innocent as he dozed, as though he hadn’t a care in the world. Minhyuk felt the urge to protect him; as he sat there with Hyunwoo’s warm body flopped against his side, he vowed that through his work, he’d make the businessman’s life as easy as possible.

“My poor tired boy must feel safe around you,” Hyewon commented softly as she walked into the room. Minhyuk got the impression that she’d been watching them for a while.  
“I don’t understand,” he replied quietly, not wishing to wake his client.  
Smiling faintly, Mrs. Son knelt down by the sofa, gazing at her son’s sleeping face. “He has never been able to sleep properly in a room with other people. There have only been a few trusted ones...”  
“Hyunwoo told me he is exhausted from work,” the cleaner told the woman. “I guess it is natural for him to be sleepy after working so hard. He’s had a few weeks of really hard graft.”  
Hyewon nodded. “The busy period. He always used to complain about that...” Reaching up, she stroked Hyunwoo’s short hair softly. The businessman wiggled his nose in his sleep.  
“Minhyuk...” he sighed, nuzzling against the blonde’s shoulder.  
The cleaner felt his cheeks heat up, and Hyewon smiled cunningly. “See, he’s even dreaming of you, lucky boy.” She stood up and ruffled Minhyuk’s hair. “Dinner will be ready in around twenty minutes. I’ll just go and freshen up.”  
With that, she left the cleaner to contemplate her son.  
Minhyuk was thoughtful. He couldn’t have imagined the way Hyunwoo sighed his name as he slept--the businessman’s mother had picked up on it as well. The tall man had sounded blissful...  
Sighing to himself, Minhyuk watched him sleep. Despite having met Hyunwoo only a few times, he was falling for him pretty hard.

 

Hyewon reappeared about fifteen minutes later. “Minhyuk, could you wake sleepy? I’ll serve up the food.” She asked in the way Minhyuk’s own mother would ask--forming an order in the shape of a question. The cleaner complied, nudging his client gently.  
“Hyunwoo? Dinner is ready...” he murmured in a soft voice.  
The businessman pulled a face and mumbled incoherently. Carefully getting up from the sofa, Minhyuk leaned over him, resting his hands on Hyunwoo’s shoulders to shake them gently.  
“Hyunwoo,” he said in a slightly louder voice.  
The businessman’s eyes fluttered open to meet with Minhyuk’s and he smiled dozily, lifting a hand to the cleaner’s arm. “Hi...” he said, still half asleep.  
“Dinner is ready, sleepy-head,” Hyewon said from the doorway. Yet again she had a smug look on her face, obviously pleased with what she saw.  
The cleaner straightened up and Hyunwoo blinked. “Dinner?” He looked up at Minhyuk hungrily.  
Mrs. Son laughed. “Bibimbap and bulgogi. Come and get it before it goes cold, sweetie-pie.”  
Standing up and muttering embarrassedly about his mother and pet names, Hyunwoo led the cleaner to the kitchen where Hyewon had set out a delicious-looking meal.  
The vase of tulips arranged by his mother and Minhyuk stood in the middle of the table.  
“Nice flowers,” Hyunwoo commented. “Lovely colours...”  
“Minhyuk brought them for you,” his mother clapped him on the shoulder.  
“Thanks, Minhyuk. They really brighten up the room,” the businessman smiled. He’d lost count of all the flowers the cleaner had brought for him. He owed the man so much! Hyunwoo wanted to do something for him; he just needed to decide what.  
Hyewon chuckled. “Do you know, Minhyuk thought so too?” she ushered her son to a seat. “Isn’t he kind? Minhyuk, please sit down!”  
The two men exchanged glances as Hyunwoo’s mother fussed about them.  
“I know he’s kind, Mum,” the businessman replied, smiling gratefully.  
“Excellent,” Hyewon set a bottle on the table and grinned at the other two. “Now let me pour you both a nice cup of soju.”  
“Oh really, Mrs. Son, I couldn’t,” Minhyuk protested politely. “I’ll have to drive home later.”  
“I told you, it’s Mum,” Hyewon reminded him, pouring the drink into his cup despite the other’s words. “And one cup won’t hurt.”  
Hyunwoo raised an eyebrow. “Mum?”  
“Sweetie, I think it’s more than appropriate,” Mrs Son smirked at her son, filling his cup. “I’m an old lady, humour me.”  
Minhyuk chuckled softly. Hyunwoo definitely got his cuteness from his Mum. “I don’t think you will ever be an old lady...Mum,” he smiled.  
Hyewon patted Minhyuk’s hand. “Good boy.”  
Hyunwoo snorted. “Creep.” In spite of what he said, his expression as he looked at Minhyuk was affectionate. “Well...” he looked at the delicious meal and raised his soju cup. “Cheers.”

 

Minhyuk had no idea how Hyewon had done it, but somehow he was feeling rather drunk--definitely not in a fit state to drive. Over the course of a delicious dinner, his cup seemed to have been refilled without him noticing and he must have drunk a lot more than he’d thought.  
When he’d stood to help Mrs. Son with the washing up he’d felt a little dizzy and - rather smugly - she’d told him to ‘sit down and have a lovely cup of coffee.’  
So he and Hyunwoo were back on the sofa; although they’d had some pretty strong espresso the businessman was looking tired again and Minhyuk felt it was time to go home.  
“I’d better call for a taxi,” the cleaner said, standing a little bit unsteadily.  
“Didn’t you drive here?” Hyunwoo asked.  
Minhyuk nodded. “But I may have drunk a little too much...”  
The businessman put two and two together, understanding how the taller man could have become intoxicated: his mother had done it on purpose. “...you could stay over,” he offered. “Taxis are expensive and you’d have to come back here for your car tomorrow anyway...”  
“I couldn’t impose on you any further,” Minhyuk replied, his tone humble.  
“You’re not imposing!” Hyewon joined them from the kitchen, wrapping an arm around Minhyuk’s waist in a motherly way. “You boys take the bed; I’ll be quite snug on the sofa.”  
Hyunwoo blushed, not able to meet the other’s eye. “Mum...don’t embarrass our guest.”  
Hyewon smirked. “I thought he was just your cleaner?”  
Minhyuk shifted uncomfortably. Mrs. Son was right; he was just Hyunwoo’s cleaner, really...but maybe he and Hyunwoo could consider themselves friends?  
The businessman stood up, pouting at his mother. “Minhyuk is my cleaner, yes, but he’s also a good friend. I’m sure you’ve noticed his virtues, mother. Now if you’ll excuse me I am rather tired,” Hyunwoo looked in the other man’s direction. “Minhyuk, I can lend you some sleepwear...”  
Hyunwoo walked from the room and the cleaner felt Hyewon giving him a little push.  
“Sleep well boys~!” she called out, a tone of mirth in her voice. “Hyunwoo, don’t hog the bed.”

 

Tentatively, Minhyuk slipped into Hyunwoo’s room. The businessman was standing at a set of drawers, rummaging through them with a flustered expression on his face.  
“I can sleep on the floor...” the cleaner spoke up gently. “Though it’s still not too late for me to call a taxi.”  
Hyunwoo sighed, resting against the drawer. “I don’t mind if you stay here, Minhyuk. It’s just my mum...”  
“She’s really something...”  
The taller man turned around. “She’s impossible. I should have known never to mention you to her because she’d start reading too much into our friendship, interfering and--we are friends, aren’t we?”  
Minhyuk smiled. “I would like it if we were friends...”  
“Then we must be friends!” Hyunwoo’s troubled face brightened into a smile. “I couldn’t let a friend sleep on the floor, you take the bed.”  
The cleaner let out a melodious laugh. “What if I told you I like sleeping on floors? You’re exhausted Hyunwoo, you need a nice soft bed to rest in. I plumped your pillows with extra care this afternoon; your mum can vouch for that.”  
“I bet she watched you like a hawk,” Hyunwoo sat on the bed, tiredness showing in his posture. All he could think of now was sleep--and Minhyuk. How he’d like for a warm hug and a good slumber beside a soft body...  
“She did...” Minhyuk studied the other man. “Please don’t worry about it, Hyunwoo. Look, I’ll just fetch some blankets and I’ll be perfectly fine. I can sleep anywhere.”  
“...I was finding you some pyjamas wasn’t I...” Hyunwoo yawned, standing up again and plucking a pair from the drawer. “Here,” he held them out.  
“Thank you. I’ll make sure they’re washed before I return them.”  
Hyunwoo grinned sleepily. “Only ‘cos I pay you to do my laundry.”  
“You’re not paying me to stay here,” Minhyuk pointed out kindly, grinning back.  
“Not my kind of thing,” the other snickered. “I don’t like the idea of paying someone to...” he trailed off, realising what he was implying.  
The cleaner cleared his throat, cheeks warming. “Uh...Well, I’ll go and get those blankets. I expect your Mum will want some too.”  
Watching him slip from the room, Hyunwoo shivered. Here he was, getting time alone with Minhyuk, and he was embarrassing himself. What’s more with his mother there who knows what might happen?  
Yawning again, Hyunwoo padded into the bathroom to wash and change. 

\---------

“Boys, are you decent?” Hyewon’s voice vibrated through Hyunwoo’s bedroom door.  
The businessman groaned softly. “Five more minutes, Mum,” he called out in a sleepy voice. Sure, he had to get up eventually - it was a work-day, after all - but he was tired and didn’t want to crawl out of bed until his alarm clock told him to.  
Mrs. Son opened the door, striding over to the curtains and drawing them back to let in the pale early-morning sun. “Time to greet the day~! I made breakfast, don’t let it ruin sweet--oh Hyunwoo, how could you make dear Minhyuk sleep on the floor?” she reprimanded her son.  
The cleaner stretched out a little; he’d kicked the blanket off in the night and now anyone who happened to look at him would get a nice view of his flat, toned stomach: precisely what Hyewon was enjoying right now.  
“It’s okay Mrs--Mum,” Minhyuk yawned, smiling politely. “I couldn’t have been any more of a burden on the two of you.”  
Hyunwoo’s mother chuckled. “Minhyuk, you’re a good boy. If I was single and a few years younger I’d be after you myself!” Giving the two men an impish grin, the woman left the room.  
Groaning again, Hyunwoo rolled onto his stomach and looked down at Minhyuk. “I’m sorry...”  
“It’s fine,” the cleaner smiled up warmly, stomach fluttering at the dishevelled sight of his client. He was sure he’d decided to seduce this man but it seemed to be Hyunwoo seducing him--without doing anything.  
“But I really shouldn’t have made you sleep on the floor. And my mum was completely eyeing you up...”  
Minhyuk smirked, pressing a finger to the businessman’s lips. “I told you: it’s fine. I chose to sleep down here and it was perfectly comfortable.” He let his finger brush against Hyunwoo’s lips as he drew it away, wondering what the other would do if he kissed him. “Thank you for you hospitality.”  
Hyunwoo swallowed. “You’re more than welcome, Minhyuk...” he watched the man thoughtfully for a moment. Minhyuk seemed different this morning; since when did the cleaner come onto him, if he could call it that? Not that he minded.  
The businessman reluctantly stood from the bed. “I’ll find you a fresh towel, you must want to wash?”  
Smiling, the cleaner sat up. “Thank you.”  
He hoped Hyunwoo would get to see his note soon, though with Hyewon around he didn’t think it was likely.

Minhyuk was the first to leave after breakfast. It had only approaching 8 a.m. but that made it high time the cleaner was off on his rounds. Mrs. Son seemed exceptionally interested in this and the slender man was surprised she didn’t invite herself along. He was thankful for it too; having spent some time with the woman he’d decided although she and her son were very much like each other in some ways, Hyewon was simply more mother-like--meaning bossy, intense, and interfering. He still liked his client’s mother, though. Perhaps through Hyewon he’d be able to get what he wanted: Hyunwoo.

 

For the first time in years, Hyunwoo found himself sitting at his desk and daydreaming. His eyes were fixed on his computer screen though he didn’t really see it; in his mind the text of the documents had warped into Minhyuk’s form. The businessman put a hand to his lips, remembering the light touch of the cleaner’s finger that morning. Minhyuk was... he was something Hyunwoo couldn’t think of a word for. Whatever it was, that little touch accompanied by the cleaner’s soft smile had sent excitement coursing through his veins. Now the businessman was alone at his desk he found himself fantasising about what could have happened, had he been thinking properly at the time: he could have taken that attractive, slender finger into his mouth as his eyes locked upon Minhyuk’s. Suckling upon the digit, he could have reached out for the cleaner, drawn him onto the bed and positioned himself on top of the other, finally letting that finger go in favour of the taller man’s lips.  
...and his mother could have walked in and made some kind of smug comment.  
Hyunwoo frowned. He had to give his mum credit for getting Minhyuk too drunk to drive home and making him stay overnight. But her presence at the apartment might end up a burden. The businessman loved his mother, but since this tiny development with Minhyuk, he wished she’d go home!  
He was starting to feel more courageous; he felt sure he’d be able to ask the cleaner to do something with him sometime--but how could they whilst his mother was staying with him and would undoubtedly interfere and tag along?  
On the other hand, the businessman knew that taking the first step was his weakness. Once he was in a relationship it was easy to make advances, arrange dates--take somebody home...  
The phone rang and Hyunwoo jerked out of his reverie with a little gasp of shock, causing a few raised eyebrows at nearby desks. For a moment he’d completely forgotten he was at work. Guilty, he answered the phone.  
“Son Hyunwoo speaking.”  
“Hyunwoo-sweetie! It’s your mother,” Hyewon’s voice rang cheerfully down the phone.  
The businessman cringed, lowering his voice. “...you know this is a business number, right?”  
“Well I tried your mobile number and it went to voicemail,” the woman replied disapprovingly. “Honestly, you’re harder to contact than your father!”  
“Did you call for any reason? Only I’ve got lots of work to do,” Hyunwoo fibbed badly. The day had been quiet so far, hence his daydreaming. He wanted to go back to that and entertain thoughts of Minhyuk some more.  
“Of course, silly boy!” Mrs. Son giggled girlishly. “I wanted to know if we’d see Minhyuk again tonight?”  
“He only comes three times a week,” Hyunwoo pointed out. “Check the calendar in the kitchen, it shows when he comes in...” He absent-mindedly scrolled through documents onscreen.  
“Won’t you invite him?”  
“He’s probably busy...”  
“Hyunwoo-sweetie, I want you to call that man and invite him to dinner again,” Hyewon insisted.  
Hyunwoo sighed. “Alright, I’ll give him a call later on. He’ll be at work right now, just as I am.” The businessman noticed his boss glaring over at him. “I’ve got to go, Mum; Oden-ssi is cooking.”  
“I haven’t heard you say that in a long time!” Mrs. Son laughed. ‘Oden-ssi is cooking’ was a sentence Hyunwoo had made up as a child to explain to someone that he was being frowned at--and that if he didn’t do something that person would end up boiling to reprimand him! “Well sweetie, I’ll see you later. Make sure you call Minhyuk, okay? Love you!”  
“Yes of course, sir,” Hyunwoo responded as his boss neared. “It will be done by the end of the afternoon.”  
He heard his mother chuckling as he hung up.

 

It had been a long day; Minhyuk was glad he had enough time to go home and put his feet up before he went out to meet a couple of friends--something he’d planned for weeks.  
Most of his day had been spent cleaning his least favourite apartment: the one inhabited by the total slob. When he’d been vacuuming he’d found underpants beneath the sofa that were crispy. The cleaner shuddered at the memory; he was surprised he hadn’t found them before since they looked as if they’d been there for a while - that or the man had been wearing them for a long time. Trying to wash them had been a nightmare; Minhyuk ended up putting them on a hot wash and hoping for the best.

On days like this, Minhyuk felt that he wasn’t cut out for a career as a cleaner. But if he wasn’t a cleaner, what else could he be? A store clerk? A refuse collector? It wasn’t as if he had the flashy qualifications or experience to go for any higher-paid jobs, and apprenticeships were virtually impossible to find in the city. Years ago, Minhyuk had dreamt of being an artist, but those dreams had fallen by the wayside as he faced the reality of bills, rent, and needing to feed himself. So he took up cleaning. It paid enough to live on, the hours weren’t all that bad, and if he was honest with himself, he enjoyed it--when he didn’t have to clean that one apartment.  
Naturally his favourite apartment to clean was Hyunwoo’s. It was in a nice building and had fairly good views of the city, in general it was tidy: just in need of the regular cleanup that Hyunwoo hadn’t the time to do. Furthermore, the businessman’s apartment felt friendlier every time Minhyuk went there. The first time he’d been in, there had been an air of loneliness about the place, but now the atmosphere of the apartment was happier. Minhyuk guessed it was because he was getting to know its charming inhabitant--so the rooms felt more like the abode of a friend rather than that of a faceless client he had no contact with.

The cleaner wanted to give something to his client and Mrs. Son, in thanks for the delicious dinner the night before. Sure, he bought flowers frequently to brighten the apartment, but in Minhyuk’s opinion, flowers hardly measured up to an invitation to dinner and a place to sleep for the night, even if it had just been the floor. Minhyuk wanted to give something to Hyunwoo, and decided a simple gift of pastries would be well-received. He knew the man liked sweet food, and guessed he would then want to give something back: Hyunwoo was simply like that. Minhyuk hoped that they would go on ‘owing’ each other for a long time.

 

Hyunwoo left work late. After the looks his boss had been giving him he hadn’t dared try to call Minhyuk whilst at his desk. However he did so the moment he stepped out of the office building.  
The cleaner answered after the second ring, recognising the number on the display. “Good evening, Hyunwoo.”  
“Minhyuk, hey,” the businessman smiled at the sound of the other’s voice, immediately feeling more light-hearted. “Are you busy?”  
“I was about to go for a walk with Saya...”  
Hyunwoo stopped in his tracks, swallowing the lump that had quickly formed in his throat. Who was Saya? Had Minhyuk gone and found himself someone? Saya sounded like a girl’s name, but he was certain the cleaner had told him he wasn’t interested in women!  
“Oh. Okay.”  
Minhyuk raised an eyebrow at how disappointed his client sounded. “Can I help with something?” he asked gently.  
“No,” the businessman answered quickly. “Well, it’s just that Mum called and wanted to know if you were coming over for dinner again tonight...”  
“It’s very kind of you to offer, but I already have plans,” the cleaner pouted to himself. Now he was the disappointed one! “Sorry Hyunwoo. A couple of my old school friends are in town so we’re meeting for drinks.”  
Almost being walked into as he stood on the street, Hyunwoo shifted closer to the wall, out of the way of other pedestrians. “Don’t worry about it!” he reassured the cleaner, trying to sound carefree. “I expect you’ve had your fill of Mum already!”  
Minhyuk chuckled. “Your Mum is lovely, Hyunwoo. She reminds me of you in some ways...”  
“She does?” Hyunwoo sounded surprised. Was the other man saying he was bossy? Over-zealous?  
“Yes. The two of you smile in the same way; you’re both warm, cheerful and friendly, among other things. Good things.”  
The businessman smiled at Minhyuk’s words, touched that the other man thought so kindly of him. “Thank you, Minhyuk...” he replied softly.  
There was a soft yip in the background and the cleaner sighed. “I’d better go and walk Saya before she chews up my shoes,” the cleaner paused momentarily. “...unless you’d like to join us? We’re heading through the park. It would be nice to have some company...”  
“I’d love to,” Hyunwoo replied straight away. “Which park?”

Minutes later, Hyunwoo was walking briskly towards the train station. Minhyuk lived across the city so naturally the cleaner would be walking in a park close to his home. From their conversation, the businessman had guessed that Minhyuk had a dog--the only other thing the cleaner could have implied in his comment about chewed shoes was a girlfriend who liked to gnaw on footwear, which Hyunwoo didn’t think was likely!  
As he neared the station, the businessman called his apartment.

“Son residence.”  
“It’s me.”  
“Hey sweetie, did you call Minhyuk?” Hyewon asked immediately.  
Hyunwoo stopped at the station entrance. “Yeah, but he’s got other plans. I’m going to be late myself, Mum-”  
“I haven’t started cooking yet, so don’t worry about it. Are you caught in a meeting?”  
“No; Minhyuk invited me to go for a walk...” Hyunwoo knew he might as well tell the truth since it would come out eventually (not to mention that his mother had a built-in radar for lies).  
“A walk? Marvellous!” Mrs. Son enthused. “Don’t fret if you need to be late, sweetie. Your Mum understands you!”  
Hyunwoo let out a sound that was half-groan, half-laugh. “It’s just a walk, Mum. But I will be late so should I pick up some takeaway on my way home?”  
“I was going to make kimchi and some fried chicken tonight,” his mother considered. “Though takeaway sounds like fun! I trust your judgement, Hyunwoo-sweetie. Get us something good okay?”  
“Of course,” the businessman chuckled. “I know the best takeaways in the city.”  
“Then I shall let you go and meet your Minhyuk, and we’ll eat later,” Hyewon stated in a cheeky tone.  
“He’s not my Minhyuk, Mum,” Hyunwoo laughed embarrassedly.  
Back in the apartment, Mrs. Son grinned to herself. “Not yet, sweetie-pie...”

 

Hyunwoo ended up being late to meet Minhyuk, which he felt was quite typical. He’d been running late all day, despite having nothing to do for most of it. The morning meeting had run overtime, after lunch there had been a telephone conference which had been late both starting and finishing, and of course Hyunwoo didn’t get out of work until late thanks to a last minute, long-winded phone call. He’d be eating late, too.  
However, Minhyuk didn’t seem too bothered about the delay and smiled welcomingly when the businessman reached him - the smile making Hyunwoo think all the lateness was definitely worth it.  
“Sorry I’m late, I had to call Mum so I missed a train,” the tall man explained sheepishly.  
“It’s fine,” Minhyuk smiled again. Hyunwoo’s face was flushed and his breathing a little laboured; it was obvious the businessman had been running. Even like this, he was cute as hell.  
“So... Where is Saya?” the businessman asked.  
Minhyuk whistled. The bushes by the park entrance rustled and from them emerged a slender black dog, which trotted up to the cleaner with a stick in its mouth, tail wagging. “Saya, say hello to Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk told the dog.  
The dog immediately went up to the shorter man, sniffing him.  
“Hello Saya!” Hyunwoo grinned at the animal and patted its head. So this was the mysterious chewer of shoes!  
As if in response, Saya dropped the stick at the businessman’s feet and sat before him expectantly.  
“She wants you to throw it,” Minhyuk smiled.  
Saya’s tail wagged.  
Hyunwoo picked up the slobber-covered stick a little gingerly, and threw it through the park gates. Letting out a little ‘woof’ of pleasure, Saya bounded after it.  
The businessman smiled up at Minhyuk and motioned to the park. “Shall we?”

 

“She’s a really great dog, Minhyuk,” Hyunwoo commented. After spending a few minutes throwing sticks for Saya, the two men had found a bench to sit on. Whilst the cleaner stretched his arms out along the back of it, Hyunwoo had drawn his feet up and was sitting cross-legged at a polite distance from Minhyuk and wondering how things would play out if he leaned back a little more--or shifted closer.  
The sun had set since they entered the park, now they were bathed in moonlight. Saya ran about on the grass nearby, snapping at the mosquitoes and moths that flew about, tail never ceasing to wag.  
Minhyuk smiled faintly, turning his attention from his dog to Hyunwoo. “She’s been my best friend for years now. I’ve had her since I was a teenager and she’s never failed to be loyal.”  
“That’s nice...” the businessman sighed a little wistfully. “I’ve never had big pets. When I was a child we had goldfish but Mum and Dad wouldn’t let me have anything bigger. These days I don’t have time for one.”  
“You were too upset when the goldfish died, right?” Minhyuk tilted his head. His client’s mother had told him all about Hyunwoo and the goldfish - how inconsolable he’d been whenever any of them passed on, and that he’d cried so much he’d soaked his pillows. Minhyuk thought the latter bit of the tale was an exaggeration on Hyewon’s part, but he was taken by the story. The businessman was obviously as sensitive and caring as he’d appeared.  
A small smile found its way onto Hyunwoo’s lips. “Mum told you about that, then.” He glanced at the cleaner, who had an unreadable expression on his face. “I hope she didn’t make it sound too bad...”  
Minhyuk shook his head. Tentatively, he lifted his hand and rested it on the shorter man’s shoulder. “It was a nice story,” he answered in a soft voice, squeezing gently. “I liked hearing about it...” Lowering his voice, he added, “I did the same when my first hamster died.”  
Hyunwoo looked at Minhyuk and smiled. “That’s...” he shook his head, unable to express himself in words. Things that would normally be incredibly embarrassing to even mention didn’t seem like such a big deal around the cleaner. Minhyuk made him feel so at ease. Even now, with the taller man’s arm virtually around his shoulders, Hyunwoo couldn’t feel uncomfortable.  
On the grass, Saya yipped, attracting the businessman’s attention again. The dog was chasing her tail, running around in circles after the ever-evasive appendage. Hyunwoo let out a soft chuckle, finding the word he was after. “Adorable.”  
Still watching Hyunwoo, Minhyuk smiled again, slowly moving his arm around the other man a little more noticeably. His client didn’t fall against his side and embrace him - the cleaner didn’t expect him to - but then, he didn’t pull away either.  
He simply stayed there.  
And Minhyuk could have sworn that Hyunwoo leaned into him just a fraction more, the tiniest of smiles at the corners of his mouth and a subtle sparkle in his eyes that the taller man really hoped he’d see more of.


	5. 05

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, but I was getting upset that so much time had passed without an update. I promise I'll make the next one longer and post it sooner! Thank you so much for the messages, they mean a lot to me.

Hyewon had been staying at her son’s apartment for a week and love her as he did, Hyunwoo was getting tired. He never had a moment alone whilst she was staying with him; peace and quiet was a thing of the past. His mother rose before him each morning and fixed him breakfast (which he was thankful for) and when he returned home in the evening she was there again--and had taken to grilling him about Minhyuk. Something had made Mrs. Son think that if she kept asking the same questions he’d eventually give the answer she wanted to hear.  
Hyunwoo knew that his mum had doubled her hopes ever since he’d gone for that walk with Minhyuk. Indeed, his own hopes had risen, too.

The notebook he and the cleaner communicated through had disappeared somewhere, though it didn’t matter so much anymore: the two of them had taken to sending text messages ever since Minhyuk invited the businessman to join him for a walk. It meant they could communicate faster, without the chance of Hyewon ‘eavesdropping’ as she may have done if they’d continued with the notebook.

 

Minhyuk had been to the apartment twice since eating there and both times the businessman’s mother had been out; the cleaner had gone about his job without interruption and enjoyed the silence of the place. The first time, Hyewon had left him a note, asking him to please take extra care when he laundered her son’s cashmere sweater. She’d signed it ‘Love Mum’, complete with a kiss. The message had made Minhyuk giggle: Hyewon was cute in her own motherly way and Hyunwoo would have been horrified if he’d seen the note. Mothers, he reflected, could be immeasurably embarrassing.

The cleaner didn’t expect the woman to be in when he entered the apartment. Yet he found her seated on the couch and when she saw him she jumped to her feet and pulled him into a hug.  
“Dear Minhyuk! It’s been too long!”  
The slim man chuckled. “Hello Mum.”  
Hyewon beamed at him, standing on her toes in order to pat the young man’s head. “Good boy, you remembered! Are you staying for lunch?”  
“I couldn’t be a nuisance to you,” he cleaner responded. “You were already so kind by asking me to dinner last week.”  
“Minhyuk, please...” Hyunwoo’s mother pouted. “I’m all alone here whilst my boy is at work. Won’t you stay for lunch and keep me company a while?” She crossed her arms expectantly. “Surely you’ll finish up here just in time to take a lunch break?”  
The cleaner sighed; besides the wrinkles and the long hair, Hyewon looked much like Hyunwoo when she pouted--and she was using her powers as a mother to her full advantage. “Thank you,” he nodded. “Though I hope you’ll let me help with the preparation.”  
The woman grinned. “If you insist! Now let’s get on with cleaning this place! I had a little accident with the flour yesterday...”  
“That reminds me,” Minhyuk reached into his cleaning box and produced a bunch of pink camellia and green fern. “I noticed the tulips were wilting.”  
Hyewon clapped in approval. “You’re a good boy, Minhyuk. We’ll arrange them first, yes? Hyunwoo secretly likes pink, you know.”  
The cleaner smiled a little; he had no idea the businessman liked the colour--when he’d gone to choose flowers he’d been drawn to them and so went with his gut feeling when buying.  
As the two of them arranged the blooms in a vase, Hyunwoo’s mother started to smirk.  
“Minhyuk, do you know that all flowers have a specific meaning attached?”  
“Really?” Minhyuk set the last camellia in the vase, moving some of the fern to make the arrangement look more attractive. “I had no idea.”  
Hyewon grinned, picking up a book from the sideboard. “I bought a book on flowers yesterday. It’s very interesting....” she began to leaf through it. “Now let’s see...”  
The cleaner grabbed a duster and a can of polish from his box and began his work, waiting for the woman to continue.  
“Oh, here we are!” Mrs. Son found the page and let out a small sound of triumph. “Camellia; gratitude or perfection--ah, there are specific meanings for the colours, did you know that? Pink camellia means...oh my!” Hyewon smirked across at Minhyuk, who suddenly found the table he was polishing to be quite interesting. “Minhyuk, you like my son, don’t you?”  
“Of course. Hyunwoo is a very likeable person,” the cleaner replied evasively.  
“It says here that pink camellia is a symbol of longing,” the woman declared playfully.  
Minhyuk looked up. “Longing?” It was the emotion he’d noticed in his client’s eyes from the moment he saw Hyunwoo’s image.  
Hyewon nodded, reading from the book. “Pink camellia: longing for you.”  
“I see...” The cleaner went back to his work. He knew what Mrs. Son was trying to get at but it didn’t seem right to tell her of how he really felt about her son. She was open-minded about sexuality - and Minhyuk knew she was trying to play cupid - but he wanted to reach out to Hyunwoo under his own steam, without either of them being pushed together by the businessman’s mother.  
“Tulips,” stated the woman. “Symbolise love and passion.” She peered at Minhyuk over the book. “Which explains why they remind us of our Hyunwoo. Red is for a declaration of love; yellow is to say, ‘there is sunshine in your smile’ or to symbolise a hopeless love.”  
Minhyuk couldn’t help but straighten up and listen now. Was Hyewon making this up? Those apparent meanings were pretty accurate to the voice of his heart.  
“What’s lily?” he asked tentatively, walking across to peer over Mrs. Son’s shoulder.  
Hyewon turned back a page. “What kind of lily?”  
The cleaner saw that there were several varieties listed in the book, and pointed to the picture that looked most like the ones he’d previously bought for Hyunwoo.  
“Longi lily. Pure and modest,” the woman smiled a little. “Are you pure and modest, Minhyuk, or are we referring to Hyunwoo?”  
The cleaner hesitated, not wanting to answer. “...what about iris?”  
“Faith and hope.”  
“White carnation?”  
Hyewon turned back another page. “White carnation: sweet and lovely; you’re adorable...” she turned and smirked up at him, closing the book. “Pure love.”  
Minhyuk took a step back. He couldn’t deny that Mrs. Son was speaking the truth--he’d been reading the book over her shoulder. The symbolic meanings of the various flowers were pretty cheesy; at the same time they were accurate. The cleaner’s heart thumped in his chest. Whilst he could have admitted to himself that he thought Hyunwoo was unspeakably adorable, he hadn’t classed that feeling as love, or anything else further than attraction and affection. Like flowers, love was something that grew from being nurtured.  
But it seemed his subconscious had admitted his feelings for him when he picked out flowers.  
Minhyuk’s mind rebelled. A person didn’t fall in love simply from seeing someone a few times - completely platonically - and exchanging notes! It was too soon for real love to have taken hold of his heart. Sure, he liked Hyunwoo an awful lot, but--  
“I’ve guessed your secret, haven’t I?” Mrs. Son’s impish voice broke through the cleaner’s thoughts. “You and my little boy. I thought from the moment he mentioned you on the phone, ‘that man will make my Hyunwoo happy’.”  
Minhyuk looked perplexed. “Hyunwoo and I are only friends, Mrs. Son.”  
“Mum,” Hyewon corrected. “I heard you had your arm around him that evening you went for a walk.” Seeing the cleaner’s surprised look, she smiled. “Don’t look so amazed, young man. Hyunwoo’s tongue gets a little loose when he’s had enough beer.”  
“What did he say?” Minhyuk asked, curiosity getting the better of him. His job was all but forgotten.  
Mrs. Son chuckled. “Not all that much. Only that when he talked about his goldfish you put an arm around him, and he couldn’t believe I’d told you that tale. Of course, he liked what you did,” she winked. “I have so many more stories to tell over lunch.”

Minhyuk went about the rest of his cleaning distractedly. Lost in his thoughts, he cleaned the same spot of the kitchen work surface multiple times before moving on. The book that Hyunwoo’s mother had bought was playing on his mind. Was it a coincidence that he’d managed to buy flowers that told of his feelings?  
As he reflected upon it further, Minhyuk realised it must be: the carnations, apparently meaning pure love, had been bought very soon after he started to clean for Hyunwoo--before he’d even met the man. Although he had seen a picture of a certain cute man, who turned out to be adorable as the flowers said. So maybe they were predicting something? Minhyuk wasn’t one to believe in predictions: he never read his horoscope and thought that psychics were a bunch of charlatans. Yet somehow he still believed in destiny and he was certain it was destiny that caused Hyunwoo and himself to make contact.

Throughout lunch, Hyewon regaled the cleaner with tales of Hyunwoo’s childhood. For a while Minhyuk found himself forgetting about the flower book, enjoying his client’s mother’s stories too much to dwell on it. Thanks to Mrs. Son, Minhyuk heard all about Hyunwoo’s first trip to the dentist, what he was like at school, and a wealth of information about the businessman’s first crush. Some of the anecdotes were in enough detail to make the cleaner blush on behalf of his client; he felt sure Hyunwoo wouldn’t be too happy about his mother telling the stories--but they only portrayed the man as more adorable.

 

Hyunwoo didn’t have a clue about what his mother had told Minhyuk, which was a good thing overall: if he’d known then he wouldn’t have been able to face the cleaner ever again for embarrassment.  
As the businessman walked homeward that evening, he wondered what the cleaner was doing. Recently he’d been thinking of the slender man even more than usual. Although they sent text messages daily and had only seen each other a few days ago, Hyunwoo missed Minhyuk.  
He thought about what might have happened if they hadn’t had to part after walking Saya--how different things might have been if he’d leaned into the cleaner more after Minhyuk put his arm around him. It may have been a friendly gesture - in which case the cleaner might have ruffled his hair and said something funny. Or it could have been more.  
Hyunwoo wondered what kissing Minhyuk would be like. The cleaner’s lips always looked so soft...  
He sighed. He’d definitely ask the other man to do something with him soon. He had the courage--didn’t he?  
‘Keep telling yourself that,’ Hyunwoo thought to himself. ‘Believe it and you might actually do it.’

Hyunwoo’s mother was waiting for him as usual when he returned home. Taking his coat, she put a mug of tea in his hand and gave him a gentle push towards the sofa. The businessman immediately suspected something--for the past week this was far from the way Hyewon had been behaving! Still, it had been a busy day and he was happy to sit down with the soothing drink without being hassled over whether he’d ‘made any progress with Minhyuk’ or if he’d met any other interesting men that day. His mother was taking far too much of an interest in his love life.  
Hyunwoo looked up when Hyewon’s shadow fell across him. She stood before him with her hands behind her back, smugness written all over her face.  
The businessman raised an eyebrow, silently asking his mother what she wanted.  
“I bought this book today,” she told him airily, drawing one hand from behind her back to reveal the book, ‘Flowers: arrangement and symbology.’ “It’s very interesting...”  
“I’m sure it is, Mum,” Hyunwoo replied, sipping his tea and trying to look unphased. He could guess what issues his mother was preparing to bring up: Minhyuk and the fact the cleaner was kind enough to bring flowers into the apartment (a favour which Hyunwoo still had to figure out a way of repaying).  
“You should take a look sometime,” Hyewon told him, setting the book on the arm of the couch. “I was very intrigued with what I read. But then I found something much more interesting when I was tidying up.”  
Hyunwoo raised his eyes from his mug to his mother. “Didn’t Minhyuk come in today?” he asked, suddenly worried. Why would his mum need to tidy if the cleaner had come? If she tidied that would mean Minhyuk hadn’t come along, and since he was scheduled to have been there, his absence could mean something was wrong!  
“You’re rather worried for your cleaner,” Mrs. Son smirked. “Sorry, I mean your friend, Minhyuk. He came today but I messed up the kitchen a little after he left.”  
“Oh, okay,” Hyunwoo said with relief.  
“Don’t you want to know what I found?” Hyewon smiled cunningly, making her son feel uncomfortable.  
Hyunwoo stared up at her. Surely she hadn’t found--  
Mrs. Son brought her other hand from behind her back, showing him the notebook he and Minhyuk had conversed through.  
“I found this much more fun than that silly flower book!” she tittered.  
“Mum!” Hyunwoo frowned and snatched the book from her, nearly spilling his tea in the process. “This is private! Tell me you didn’t read it.”  
“Sorry sweetie, I was just too curious,” the woman smiled meekly.  
The man pouted, holding the book to his chest in an almost childish manner. “This was private, Mum. You don’t listen to other people’s conversations, do you?” he asked quietly.  
Hyunwoo felt disappointed, angry--even a little bit sad. There was nothing too revealing in the notebook - a lot of his conversation with Minhyuk had been casual talk - yet he was hurt to know his mother had read it. By doing so, she had desecrated the intimacy of the notebook; tainted something special to him. Writing within it to Minhyuk wouldn’t be the same anymore, knowing that his mother had read their past conversations. He felt spied upon.  
“Calm down sweetie,” Mrs. Son gave a placating smile. “It wasn’t as if I read your diary.”  
“As good as,” Hyunwoo replied grumpily.  
“If it counts for anything, I didn’t learn much that I didn’t already know,” Hyewon rolled her eyes. Her son was impossible at times! “Except all that stuff Minhyuk wrote about his favourite this and that.” She patted Hyunwoo’s shoulder. “What he wrote about love and finding the right person was sweet. He’s a keeper, Hyunwoo-sweetie.”  
“Mum, we are not together!” the businessman snapped, setting his tea on the coffee table with a bang and standing up. He was at the end of his tether; his mother couldn’t accept that he was single and it was making it harder for him. Yes, he liked Minhyuk and yes, he wanted to be with the cleaner, but being pressured by his Mum only made him want to rebel against her wishes. “Give me a break, won’t you?” he said more calmly. He could see he’d surprised Hyewon with his outburst. He added softly, “Let things work themselves out,” before retreating to his bedroom, clutching the notebook to his chest.  
He wouldn’t let it out of his sight until his mother had gone home.

 

Hyunwoo lay back on his bed. He was uncomfortable after the conversation-come-argument with his mum. He hadn’t meant to shout; Hyewon just frustrated him. Once she set her mind to something it was hard to dissuade her. He’d put up with her prying and pestering, but she’d overstepped the mark this time.

Maybe she’d been giving him the final push he needed to do something. The thought only struck him after a good twenty minutes of mulling over the matter. Hyunwoo flipped through the pages of the notebook moodily, reading their past conversations. Reaching the end of their written notes, the businessman realised the last one was from Minhyuk. It was a note he hadn’t seen before:  
‘I am relieved you’re alright, Hyunwoo,’ he read. ’I haven’t seen the man I like for a while either.’  
Hyunwoo drew a breath. Minhyuk liked men, definitely liked men. He’d known it all along but seeing it in print made all the difference. Maybe the person that the cleaner had written about before really was him.  
So what should he do? Part of him didn’t want to give his mother the pleasure of getting what she wanted (provided Minhyuk said yes). On the other hand, he wasn’t going to deprive himself of a chance at happiness (again, provided the cleaner said yes).  
Everything depended upon the slender man’s answer--and that when he’d described the person he liked before, that he’d been talking about Hyunwoo.  
All the businessman had to do was summon the strength to broach the subject.  
Maybe that last note was why his mum told him Minhyuk was a keeper. Hyunwoo frowned. His mother was another hurdle he needed to get over. He wasn’t going to let her interfere with any kind of deeper relationship he might form with Minhyuk.

With shaky hands and a troubled mind, Hyunwoo tapped out a text message.  
A few minutes later, the phone rang.


	6. 06

“I’m so glad you called,” Hyunwoo said when he answered the phone.  
“Hyunwoo, is everything okay? Your message sounded troubled.” Minhyuk’s voice was breathless, worried. The businessman’s text had simply read, ‘Something happened. Could be bad. I don’t know what to do...’  
Hyunwoo sighed. “It’s mum again,” he began. “Are you free to meet up? I really need to get out of the apartment.”  
The cleaner relaxed a little. If it was just something to do with Hyewon, then at least the world wasn’t ending. “Sure.”

Minhyuk met Hyunwoo in McDonald’s. It was hardly the classiest of places to meet but the businessman proclaimed himself in need of dinner. The cleaner didn’t question whether or not Mrs. Son was planning to cook, and Hyunwoo didn’t bother telling his mother anything other than, ‘I’ll be back later.’  
“What happened?” Minhyuk asked as he joined Hyunwoo at his table.  
His client reached into his bag and pulled out the notebook. “I don’t know where it was, but she found it. She read it...”  
“Oh...” he pursed his lips, running a hand over the smooth cover of the notebook. He supposed it was partly his fault for not putting it away in a place where Mrs. Son wouldn’t find it. “What did she say?” The cleaner couldn’t think that either of them had written anything incriminating in their notes--yet Hyunwoo seemed so upset about it.  
“That it was an interesting read...” the businessman sighed, sitting back in his seat and frowning a little. “She said some stuff about you too, Minhyuk.”  
The blonde tilted his head curiously. “Bad things?”  
“No, not at all!” Hyunwoo sat forward again, elbows on the table. “She was just...”  
“Being your mum?”  
“Yeah...” he sighed again, resting his chin in his hands. “I should have known she’d read it, if she found it. I don’t like the idea that she’s read through our conversations. They were private--personal.” he touched the notebook again and looked back at Minhyuk. “Am I overreacting?”  
The cleaner studied the other man, causing Hyunwoo to glance away and sip his drink. Minhyuk understood now, why his client was so bothered over the notes being read. He felt a small twinge of sadness in his chest as he realised: talking to each other in notes wouldn’t be as special anymore. They’d always remember how Hyewon found and read everything. Whilst she was at Hyunwoo’s apartment, neither man could feel excitement in finding a new note without wondering if the woman had read it first.  
“Maybe it is a bit silly of me to get so agitated over this,” Hyunwoo added after the cleaner didn’t answer his question. “I just felt angry and sad that Mum hadn’t respected our privacy. I hadn’t even seen your last note until today.”  
Minhyuk shook his head. “You are not being silly, Hyunwoo. It’s understandable. If I’m honest, I feel a little surprised and disappointed myself.”  
Hyunwoo nodded. “Well I’m sorry to have dragged you out here just to whine about a few notes,” he apologised, reaching for the notebook to put it back in his bag.  
He was stopped by Minhyuk’s hand suddenly resting over his. “No, I’m glad you asked to meet up,” the cleaner smiled softly, squeezing the other’s hand before letting go. “I wanted to ask you something.”  
“A favour?” Hyunwoo asked, subconsciously licking his lips. His cheeks felt a bit warm, which he blamed on the heating in the building--of course it wasn’t because his friend had touched him!  
“No...” Minhyuk leaned forward a little, stealing one of Hyunwoo’s chips. “I was hoping to ask, since you and your mum kindly invited me to dinner last week, if you’d let me return the favour.”  
Hyunwoo sat up straight, an objection already on his lips. “You do so much for us anyway, we couldn’t possibly-”  
“Actually, I meant just you,” the cleaner looked sheepish. “Your Mum is lovely but-”  
“But I still couldn’t accept. Minhyuk, I owe you so much. After cleaning, all the flowers, and your companionship--it’s me that should be asking you to dinner. I’ve been wanting to for ages but Mum kind of got in the way....”  
The fairest of the pair rested his hand over Hyunwoo’s again. ‘Here goes,’ he thought to himself. “Then how about I ask you on a dinner-date?”  
Hyunwoo’s breath caught in his throat. Minhyuk had beaten him to it! Having intended to invite the cleaner out, the slender man had gone and asked him! Granted, Hyunwoo had certainly taken his time in saying anything--he guessed this was his penalty for being too afraid.  
“If you’re trying to think of a way to decline politely...” Minhyuk began after a moment. Had he asked too soon? Should he have flirted outrageously first, to see what became of it? He began to draw his hand away, but the other man took hold of it again.  
“Okay,” Hyunwoo smiled faintly and nodded. “But on one condition.”  
Minhyuk tilted his head. “What would that be?” He’d give in to just about any condition the other might set--unless Hyunwoo asked something ridiculous, like for him to dress like a woman!  
Hyunwoo smirked, his expression more cunning than any that Minhyuk had seen upon Hyewon’s face. “You can only take me out if you let me pay for you.”  
The cleaner pouted. “If I did that then it wouldn’t count, sinc--” he stopped mid-sentence, and suddenly grinned. “Okay. But only if you let me pay for you”  
Laughing, the businessman nodded. “Deal,” he smiled. “You know, Mum calls that ‘going Dutch’”.  
“Why?” Minhyuk looked confused.  
“Haven’t a clue,” Hyunwoo shook his head. “Um, Minhyuk, I do have one other request...”  
“What is it?”  
Hyunwoo leaned closer, wide-eyes looking imploringly into the cleaner’s. “Please keep this a secret from my mother.”  
Running his fingers lightly over the back of his future-date’s hand, Minhyuk smiled. “I think that would be a good idea. So when are you free...?”

 

Hyunwoo returned home with a happy, warm sensation in the pit of his stomach--a complete turnaround compared to his mood when he’d left the apartment.  
Hyewon was waiting for him.  
“Hyunwoo, I want to talk to you.”  
The businessman smiled at her. “It’s okay Mum. You read it and there’s nothing I can do to change that. Let’s put it behind us.”  
Mrs. Son shook her head. “No, sweetie. Come and sit down with me...” she pulled him to the sofa, making him sit down before she continued. “I shouldn’t have pried into your life, but please understand my reasoning...”  
“Mum, don’t worry about it.”  
“Just listen to me for a minute, Hyunwoo-ah,” Hyewon prodded her son. “You’re not getting any younger. Most people your age have married and had children by now--which I know isn’t something I can expect from you. But I worry, sweetie, that you’ll spend your life alone and miserable, like auntie Haesoo.”  
“I’m not going to live my life alone, Mum,” Hyunwoo protested quietly. “Just because I’m single right now doesn’t mean I’ll always be that way.”  
His mother sighed. “I had high hopes, Hyunwoo, that I’d come here and find you and Minhyuk on the verge of a relationship. I wanted to nurture the two of you, see you come together...” she pulled a tissue from her sleeve and dabbed at her eyes. “But it seems I’m just in the way.”  
The businessman wrapped his arms around his mother, uttering the name he used to call her when he was still a young child. “Mama...”  
“I’m okay, sweetie...”  
“You’re not in the way, Mama,” Hyunwoo began, not seeing the glint in her eye. “Though if you could stop trying to force Minhyuk and I together, I’d appreciate it.”  
Hyewon fought the urge to pout. She’d hoped that after her speech, her son would tell her that it was all okay and actually he was happy with what she’d been doing--then she could continue to scheme for her son’s happiness. She hadn’t expected Hyunwoo to tell her to stop.  
“Well, if that’s what you wish,” she smiled faintly. “I’m going home tomorrow, Hyunwoo, but promise me one-”  
The businessman pulled back. “You’re not going because of our fight, are you?”  
“No... But it did make me think,” Mrs. Son admitted. “I’ve outstayed my welcome,” she looked up at her son with a smirk. “And how could you bring Minhyuk to spend the night with you if I’m here?”  
“Mum!” Hyunwoo whined and laughed. His mother really couldn’t help herself when it came to teasing.  
“I know all about how it works between men, sweetie. I’ve read books.”  
The businessman was bright red now. “You and your reading...” he said affectionately.  
Hyewon smiled. “As I was saying, sweetie: I want you to make me a promise.”  
“Promise what?” the man frowned slightly. He knew well enough not to agree to anything until he found out exactly what it was.  
“Make yourself happy. You might not want to admit it to me, but you and Minhyuk would be really good together,” she touched her son’s arm. “I meant it when I said he’s a keeper, Hyunwoo.”  
In response, the businessman smiled and hugged her again. “I won’t live lonely, Mum.”

 

Minhyuk couldn’t have asked for his meeting with Hyunwoo to have gone better. He’d asked his client out, Hyunwoo had agreed - though not without rather endearing conditions - and after talking about various things for a while longer, they’d parted, smiling.

They’d arranged their date for just under a week later; Minhyuk hoped this would give him enough time to plan. He already had a mental list of things to do: find out which restaurants are meant to be the best, check out what they look like inside, what sort of dishes are on the menu, order a bouquet for Hyunwoo (he figured he needed something a little more special to present him with, what with it being a date), find something in his closet that was suitable--and having caught sight of himself in the mirror, the cleaner considered he’d better get a haircut, too.  
Minhyuk hoped the date would go perfectly. Already feeling nervous, he reminded himself of the times he and Hyunwoo had spent together. The first time they met, when the businessman had been suffering with vertigo. The day Hyunwoo accompanied him around and helped to clean, and that moment in the kitchen where Minhyuk was struck by how strongly he wanted the other. He’d thought of seduction that day, yet hadn’t done anything at all - life and Hyunwoo’s mother had got in the way. The cleaner had just been himself around the other man. It must have worked, since Hyunwoo had agreed to their date.  
Minhyuk smiled to himself. His thoughts would keep returning to that date--probably even after it had happened.

The cleaner was still caught in his thoughts when his phone rang. He smiled when he recognised Hyunwoo’s number, answering it.  
“Hello again, Hyunwoo...”  
“Actually it’s Mum~” Hyewon’s voice rang cheerfully down the telephone.  
Minhyuk blinked in surprise. He hoped the woman hadn’t caught on to how he’d said ‘again’; he didn’t want her to start asking about him already speaking to the businessman again. “...good evening...”  
“Don’t you want to know why I called?”  
“Of course. Is everything okay?” asked the cleaner.  
Mrs. Son giggled. “Everything is good, Minhyuk. Tomorrow, I shall return home. I’ll be catching an early train and was hoping you’d come and see me off. An 8.15 departure won’t interfere with your work, will it?”  
Minhyuk faltered. Usually he started work at 8am, when most of his clients had left their homes to go to work. But it wouldn’t hurt to be a little late; he’d just finish late too. “Alright; I can do that,” he replied. “Is Hyunwoo going to see you off, too?”  
“Naturally,” the woman’s voice carried a grin. “My little boy wouldn’t let me go if he couldn’t wave goodbye!”  
The cleaner giggled softly. “Then I will see you both tomorrow,” he said in a tone that was probably more affectionate than it needed to be.  
“Yes, and you can see Hyunwoo-sweetie again,” Hyewon teased. “So when did you last speak to him, today? It sounded as though you’d talked already, considering how you answered the phone...”  
Minhyuk pouted to himself. “We talked on the phone for a little while earlier.”  
“Oh?”  
“Yes. A nice, private conversation.” The cleaner didn’t let on that he knew about Hyewon reading the notebook.  
“Wonderful!” Mrs. Son exclaimed. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Minhyuk!”

 

The next morning, Hyunwoo went with his mother to the train station, carrying her case for her. He had mixed feelings about her departure; he was seldom able to see his parents so in a way it had been nice to have Hyewon around--even if she had interfered with his life, read his notebooks, and tried to play cupid with Minhyuk and himself. The businessman supposed it was a typical mother-son relationship: whilst loving each other, they also annoyed the hell out of each other.  
Mrs. Son seemed quite cheerful as they walked towards the train station, as though she was happy to go home.  
“Are you looking forward to seeing Dad?” Hyunwoo asked her.  
“Of course darling,” Hyewon smiled, linking arms with her son. She hadn’t told him about her call to Minhyuk--she’d only managed to do it after ‘borrowing’ Hyunwoo’s phone whilst he was taking a bath. She hoped leaving the two of them together would remind her son of his promise.

It turned out that the cleaner was already waiting at the station; he waved and came to meet them.  
“Minhyuk, what are you doing here?” the businessman asked in surprise.  
“I asked if he’d come to see me off too,” Hyewon explained.  
The slender man nodded; it was obvious Mrs. Son hadn’t told her son of their conversation. Without saying anything, he moved to help Hyunwoo with the woman’s suitcase. It was of the old, bulky style with no wheels and a small plastic handle, which made it rather difficult to carry.  
“It’s okay, Minhyuk, I can manage.”  
“Are you sure? It doesn’t look all that easy to hold...”  
Hyunwoo frowned. “It isn’t very heavy,” he insisted.  
Minhyuk opened his mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by Hyewon’s snickering.  
“You boys!” she exclaimed in delight. “You sound like Father and I when we first met! Minhyuk, have I told you about that?”  
The cleaner shook his head, and when they stopped to wait in the train station, Mrs. Son explained.  
“I had gone on a winter holiday with my parents; now this is back when I was only nineteen and it was the first holiday we’d been on! I was so excited to ride long-distance on the train and see all the scenery pass by! Now when we got to our destination, I struggled and struggled with my over-packed suitcase. A young railway porter spotted my problem and came to assist. But back then I liked to think of myself as a feminist, and I did not want his help!”  
Hyunwoo listened to the old story with a faint smile on his lips. He wondered if one day when he was his mother’s age, he would be the one telling a story about how he met his long-term partner--or ‘true love’, as the businessman liked to think of it when he was in a more romantic mood.  
“--and then all my belongings fell onto the floor, I was mortified! And this young porter was so ashamed of dropping it; he kept apologising and after helping me put everything back he very shyly asked if he could take me to dinner by way of apology. Of course, I--”  
The story amused Minhyuk somewhat. He could easily imagine a young, opinionated Hyewon behaving in that way. In this respect, she was a little different to Hyunwoo--the tall man didn’t seem as argumentative for a start!  
Minhyuk’s heart fluttered as he glanced at the businessman. Hyunwoo had zoned out - probably having heard the same story countless times - and Minhyuk felt the strong urge to kiss those softly-smiling lips of his to awaken him from his daydream.  
Hyunwoo looked up then, eyes meeting with Minhyuk’s. The cleaner smiled, wishing it were possible that he could reach out to the businessman, hold on to him and tell him how lovely he looked.  
“--by the time we’d finished our holiday, I had seen him more than my parents, we’d exchanged addresses because of course we didn’t have a telephone back then, and I just knew we’d spend our lives together!” Mrs. Son beamed, patting Minhyuk’s arm.  
“Lovely story,” the slender man nodded. “Thank you for telling me.”  
“It was a pleasure,” Hyewon hugged the cleaner’s arm. “I assume you found it inspiring?” she asked with a sly grin.  
“Perhaps...” the other replied noncommittally.  
An announcement was made on the station and the woman sighed. “Well, that’s the call for my train!” She smiled softly at the two men. “I’ll see you two boys next time I come to visit!”  
Moving closer, Hyunwoo hugged his mother. “It was wonderful to see you, Mum.”  
“You too, sweetie,” she hugged back and kissed his cheek before letting go, turning to Minhyuk. “Don’t think you will get away without a hug!”  
As Hyunwoo stood aside, the cleaner stepped in to take his place. Hyewon hugged him tight and kissed his cheek just as she’d done to Hyunwoo.  
“Have a safe journey,” Minhyuk told her, stepping back to stand beside the taller man.  
“And send my love to Dad,” the businessman added.  
“Of course, Hyunwoo-sweetie.” Smiling, Mrs. Son kissed them both again before heading towards the ticket barriers.  
As they watched her leave, Minhyuk felt something warm and soft brush lightly - almost hesitantly - against his hand. Then, more forwardly, Hyunwoo’s fingers linked with the cleaner’s own.

They waited until the train had pulled out of the station, neither saying a word. Hyunwoo couldn’t prevent the smile that formed on his lips; the butterflies in his stomach telling him that taking Minhyuk’s hand had been the right thing to do. It felt pleasant and comfortable; the businessman loathed the idea of having to let go sometime soon and haul himself to his boring job in that boring office, away from Minhyuk.  
Even as the train disappeared from the station, he made no move to pull his hand away from the other. Instead he turned to him, eyes lowering to meet with the cleaner’s once again.  
“Thank you for coming today, Minhyuk.”  
The shorter man smiled, leaning upwards to kiss Hyunwoo’s cheek. “Not a problem. I wanted to.”  
Hyunwoo let out a quiet chuckle. “At least we can be sure she’s really gone home...” he sighed softly. “Well... I suppose we both should get off to work...”  
“Yes...” Minhyuk looked regretful as he withdrew his hand from the businessman’s.  
Together they walked to the station entrance, turning to each other once more as they reached the street. Both had a different direction to take, entirely different jobs to go to--both were already running late.  
“So I’ll see you Wednesday,” Hyunwoo smiled nervously. The way the cleaner had been looking at him in the station had made his heart leap and even now it was thudding against his chest.  
“I’m looking forward to it,” Minhyuk smiled back: Wednesday was the day of their date.  
For several long moments they just stood there in silence. Then on impulse, Hyunwoo leaned down and pressed a quick, chaste kiss to the other man’s lips, taking a step back when he pulled away.  
“I’m looking forward to it too,” he breathed, watching the other closely. He hadn’t thought about what he’d just done: it had happened naturally. Minhyuk’s lips had felt as soft as they looked--he wanted to kiss them again.  
The cleaner smiled adoringly at him. His day couldn’t get much better after that!  
“Well...bye for now,” the businessman gave a sheepish smile. Parting with someone he liked - and who knew he liked them - was difficult for him.  
“Good bye,” Minhyuk nodded, giving the businessman’s arm a lingering touch. “I’ll see you soon.”  
After another long pause, the two men managed to wrench themselves apart, each going off to work with a smile upon their face.

Wednesday would not come soon enough.


	7. 07

Although his mother had gone home, Hyunwoo was far from able to relax. Both excited and nervous about his date with Minhyuk, the businessman was unable to settle back into his usual routine. At work he was reprimanded for not paying attention in a meeting--he’d been caught staring out of the window, a dreamy expression on his face. Having apologised, he found his thoughts trailing back to Minhyuk as the meeting continued!  
Hyunwoo’s thoughts were only on the cleaner, and their forthcoming date. He was tense, his mind flooded with questions. Where were they going to go? What if he didn’t like the food? Or if something bad happened? What if he got nervous and couldn’t think of anything to say? The more he thought about it, the more frustrated he became. Normally, he didn’t become so agitated over a date - at the end of the day, if it didn’t go well he usually didn’t have to see the person again.  
But with Minhyuk, it was different. He would see Minhyuk after their date, if only on a client-employee basis. Except he didn’t want only that; he wanted the evening to go perfectly.  
Hyunwoo had no ideal vision for the date. The most perfect part - Minhyuk - would already be present. It was a sappy thought, though Hyunwoo knew it to be true. Minhyuk’s and his first real ‘moment’ (as he thought of it) had been in a stranger’s kitchen, surrounded by the smell of cleaning fluids--hardly the most romantic of settings. But when pressed together by accident, it had been enough to set Hyunwoo’s heart racing and flood his mind with thoughts of making out with the other man.

The businessman was glad when lunchtime rolled around. As he stood in line in the cafeteria he pulled out his phone and sent Minhyuk a text:  
‘Where are we going on Wednesday? Just so I know what to wear!’ He added a ‘laugh’ at the end of the sentence.  
Returning the phone to his pocket, Hyunwoo waited hopefully for a reply.

 

Minhyuk swore out loud when he read the message; an action that was quite unlike his usual character. He hadn’t had a proper opportunity to check out restaurants yet, let alone make a reservation. Hyunwoo’s mother had left just over twenty-four hours ago and he hadn’t got around to figuring out where to take the other man. As he vacuumed a client’s apartment (taking care to navigate around numerous little side-tables that annoyed the hell of him) the slender man thought back to his last dinner-date. Then he remembered that it had been a really poor excuse for a date. The man who asked him out had taken him to a grubby-looking diner; the cleaner had wanted to vomit at every mouthful of food he ate--he couldn’t imagine that anything had been cleaned properly and the grey, jelly-like glob of something on the edge of the plate looked as though it might have come alive at any moment. His date, meanwhile, had ploughed into his own food with gusto.  
Needless to say, Minhyuk hadn’t seen that man again.  
Sighing to himself, the cleaner tried to recall his last good date. As far as he remembered, it had been more of an accidental one. He and a former work colleague he’d been close to had gone to try out a new, traditional-style restaurant, just as friends. Yet once they’d been shown to their table the atmosphere between them had changed somehow. The food had been pretty good, but by dessert all they’d cared about was how quickly they could get to a private place and make out.  
Sadly it hadn’t worked out between them; though they’d been physically compatible they were complete opposites when it came to everything else.  
Still, the restaurant had been great. Minhyuk decided to go there after work and find out about booking a table.  
There was just the matter of replying to Hyunwoo’s text--Minhyuk could hardly ignore him or Hyunwoo would get worried.

 

Indeed, worry was exactly what Hyunwoo was doing. Lunch was over and his cleaner hadn’t replied to him. Growing more anxious, the businessman drew out his mobile phone and set it on the desk. Since his mother had gone home, had Minhyuk changed his mind about going on a date?  
Face forming a frown, Hyunwoo picked up the phone again. He’d send another message to the cleaner and ask if Wednesday was still convenient. That way, if Minhyuk was trying to find a way to politely tell Hyunwoo he didn’t want to go out after all, he’d have it.  
He was about to hit send when the phone vibrated in his hands - a silent signal that he received a message. The businessman checked his inbox hurriedly, heaving a sigh of relief when he found the reply from Minhyuk.  
‘Wear something nice! Smart-casual? Also, is there anything you don’t like to eat?’  
The fact that the cleaner had ended the message with a smiley face eased the other man’s earlier worries, though he pouted over the fact Minhyuk hadn’t told him where they were going. But as long as they were going somewhere, Hyunwoo wouldn’t care even if they ended up sharing a muffin at Starbucks!  
After replying to the cleaner’s message, the businessman was finally able to settle down and concentrate on his work.

 

It turned out that the traditional restaurant Minhyuk had eaten at before was no longer there. Instead, it was a trendy-looking restaurant and bar, with both tables and booths; the latter set in more low-lit areas of the room.  
Hyunwoo had already told him that there was no food on the planet he wouldn’t try eating at least once, which gave the cleaner one less thing to worry about. Even if Hyunwoo did dislike certain foods, the menu was varied and a glance at the plates inside suggested the meals to be quite appetising.  
Deciding it would be just the right place to take his date (particularly as there were several varieties of after dinner coffee on offer) Minhyuk went inside to make a reservation.

 

Hyunwoo was tired when he got home. He’d not slept well the night before: he’d kept thinking back to when Minhyuk and himself had gone to say goodbye to his mother; if that wasn’t all he’d been thinking about their forthcoming date and imagining all kinds of scenarios that could take place. Normally the businessman didn’t feel so tired after a day of work on little sleep, but all the time his mum had been there she’d barely stopped for five minutes. Keeping up with the woman and her chattering had been hard.  
Minhyuk stayed on the businessman’s mind even as he cooked and ate dinner and took a shower. Knowing that he’d never sleep if his thoughts continued like this, Hyunwoo wandered into the bedroom and picked up the phone, dialling the cleaner’s number. Maybe, he thought, he’d be able to sleep easily if he talked to the slender man before sleeping.  
As he sat listening to the rings, he began to wonder if the other man was out, until finally:  
“This is Lee speaking.” Minhyuk’s voice was a little breathless when he answered the phone.  
“Minhyuk?” the businessman’s eyes widened. Had he interrupted something?  
“Hyunwoo, hey! I just got to the phone in time! Saya and I were out for a walk.”  
“I thought I might have disturbed you.”  
“Not at all. I’m only glad I was back in time to receive your call...”  
Hyunwoo smiled. “I’m glad too. Still up for Wednesday?”  
“Of course I am!” Minhyuk replied cheerfully. “Our table at the restaurant is booked, so I will pick you up at 7.45. Is that alright?”  
“Brilliant,” the businessman replied easily. That would give him plenty of time to return from work and get ready. “You said smart-casual, right?”  
“Anything you want really, so long as it’s not jeans or jogging bottoms...” the cleaner considered this. “I think smart-casual would suit the venue best; it’s kind of trendy.”  
“Won’t you tell me where we’re going?” Hyunwoo asked hopefully. Starting to feel sleepy, he laid back on the bed, still holding the phone to his ear.  
Minhyuk smirked to himself. “I could tell you...”  
“Please do,” the man’s steady tone was learned from his mother: an order in guise of a request. “It will make choosing an outfit so much easier.”  
The cleaner let out a giggle. “Hyunwoo, you make picking out clothes sound like running a marathon.”  
Hyunwoo laughed at this. “It is like running a marathon! I end up feeling exhausted and wondering what I was thinking!” Realising the other man could misinterpret his words he backtracked. “What I was thinking when I bought various items of clothing, I mean.”  
“I know the feeling...” Minhyuk commented. “Sometimes I look into my wardrobe and wonder where my taste went when I shopped for clothes.”  
“We should go shopping sometime.” Reaching for a pillow, Hyunwoo hugged it comfortably to his chest.  
This made Minhyuk smile. “Would it count as another date?”  
“If you wanted it to be,” the businessman replied softly. “I’m looking forward to Wednesday...”  
“Me too. Kind of wish it could come sooner,” the other man agreed.  
“So do I... I keep looking at my calendar and thinking, ‘Is it Wednesday yet?’”  
It was hardly the first time either of them had expressed their excitement for the date, which Hyunwoo took as being a definite good sign. He smiled, closing his eyes and hugging the pillow to his chest. From the recesses of his mind sparked a fantasy of the pillow actually being Minhyuk, which was only helped by the cleaner’s voice at the other end of the phone line.  
“At least each day that passes is one less day to wait,” the cleaner suggested.  
“Yeah,” the businessman chuckled softly. “You still haven’t told me where we’re going...”  
Minhyuk let out a chuckle of his own. “Oops. Have you heard of In Vogue?”  
Hyunwoo hugged the pillow some more, trying to remember. “I don’t think so... What is it?” he suppressed a yawn.  
“A restaurant, Hyunwoo. The restaurant.”  
“Ohh...!” the businessman exclaimed sheepishly. “No, I haven’t. I don’t go to many restaurants, only ramen bars and takeaways...”  
“I know,” Minhyuk said affectionately. “You told me, ages ago now.”  
“In the notebook?” Hyunwoo smiled warmly at the memory of their old pen and paper conversations. “I have that right here next to me.”  
Since his mother had found it, the businessman kept it on his nightstand, his alarm clock set on top of it and positioned in a particular way that meant he could see if someone had nosed through the notebook.  
“In the notebook,” the cleaner confirmed with a smile. “So you’re keeping it in your room, now?” he asked. He’d seen it there when he’d been in to clean.  
“Away from people, yeah...” Hyunwoo suppressed a yawn. In his tired mind, the pillow had become heavier, warmer: more like a human body. The businessman had always been blessed with a powerful imagination. “Of course, Minhyuk, you’re the exception. It’s yours to touch, look at, and write in as much as it is mine...”  
“I kind of miss our paper conversations...”  
“Yeah... I guess we could always go back to them now and again. It was nice to return home from work to find a message from you,” Hyunwoo smiled. “Perhaps I’ll start leaving it out again.”  
“If you did, I would leave you nice notes,” Minhyuk promised.  
“Sounds like a deal to me...” the businessman was interrupted from saying any more as he yawned.  
“Hyunwoo?”  
“Hm?”  
“Are you tired?” the cleaner’s soft voice showed concern.  
“Yeah... I really ought to go soon...”  
“Then go,” Minhyuk replied gently. “We can talk more tomorrow, if you want.”  
“Of course I want to,” the businessman chuckled softly. “Goodnight, Minhyuk.”  
“Goodnight Hyunwoo.”  
The businessman was asleep within minutes of hanging up the phone, hugging the pillow to his chest with a small smile playing across his lips as he dreamed.

 

Curled up on his couch, Minhyuk doodled in a notepad. His doodles had begun life as a list of things he needed to do before the date (since he kept forgetting things on his mental list). He’d checked off ‘book table’ and written in the details of the reservation. Whilst on the telephone to a florist earlier he’d started to draw flowers and smiley faces beside his list and wondered exactly what flowers he could give to another man. Presenting a date with a bouquet of flowers was a completely different matter to putting a modest bunch in a vase to brighten Hyunwoo’s apartment. Thankfully the woman at the florist had been helpful and claimed she could put together a more specific bouquet; Minhyuk had to pick them up on Wednesday afternoon. Of course, it had been far from cheap--but Hyunwoo was worth it.  
Once he’d hung up the phone, Minhyuk found he’d drawn his client surrounded by daisies. He half-wondered what Hyewon’s book would have said about that.  
After the phone call to the florist, the cleaner had simply carried on doodling; now he had a little cartoon Hyunwoo running and dancing around his notes. Minhyuk felt a bit silly when he’d finished, feeling like a lovesick schoolboy. Still, he considered, there was nothing wrong with having feelings for someone--feelings that seemed to be growing stronger by the day.

 

Despite both men being busy with their respective jobs, the days leading up to their date seemed to crawl by. Tuesday evening rolled around and - throwing open his wardrobe doors - Hyunwoo started to decide what he’d wear the next evening.  
In only ten minutes, he was wishing he’d thought about this earlier--which only proved to the businessman that it had been all too long since his last serious date.  
He wanted to look good for Minhyuk; at the same time he needed to pick an outfit that was neither too smart nor too casual. This immediately gave Hyunwoo problems since his favourite and most flattering pair of trousers were jeans, slightly faded and worn from use. The businessman had countless shirts - all crisp white or powder blue, all boring and plain, worn only for work. He had some other shirts, but they looked too smart: when Hyunwoo wanted something casual he put on a t-shirt rather than a casual button-down shirt.  
Two hours passed. Hyunwoo was no closer to making a decision but he was close to a meltdown. Was there nothing in his wardrobe that would be good enough?!  
Clothes were scattered around the businessman’s room; he’d found an old suit and a denim jacket from the late nineties hidden at the back of the wardrobe but neither of those were things he’d wear out on a date with Minhyuk.  
Sighing to himself, Hyunwoo left the room and went to brew some coffee, hoping that sitting down and thinking about it would make him feel better. Then he could go back to his clothes-strewn room with a calmer mind and find himself an outfit.

 

Unlike Hyunwoo, Minhyuk had no problem deciding what to wear--indeed, he’d come to the decision on the same evening the businessman had accepted his invitation: straight-leg trousers in a dark grey, touchable fabric twinned with a dark blue, lightweight shirt; a faint pattern woven into the fabric that caught in the light. Minhyuk had pulled numerous times whilst wearing that outfit, and knew it made him look his best.

 

Wednesday, and the businessman couldn’t concentrate on anything. One of his colleagues had asked if he was alright; he was so jittery that his hands shook as he signed papers and whenever the phone rang he jumped a mile high. Hyunwoo was like a man high on coffee--without, for once, having consumed any at all.  
Then when he’d let out a faint ‘aah!’ of triumph (since he’d finally worked out what he would wear that evening) his boss had joined in speaking his concerns. Hyunwoo was asked again if everything was okay, since he hadn’t been himself at the office recently. Unlike the man’s co-worker, his boss had reminded him that personal issues should be kept in check and not let them interfere with his work.  
Hyunwoo had smiled sheepishly, apologised, and promised that everything would be fine by the next day.  
When the workday ended, he practically ran home.

 

Minhyuk was glad to have had a busy day of work. All the cleaning he’d done (he’d been to the messy apartment again) had helped keep his mind off the evening’s date. If he’d had less work to do that day he might have found himself becoming nervous and stressed. But through cleaning he’d remained calm, and he drove back to his apartment that evening with a steady heartbeat, looking forward to his date with Hyunwoo rather than stressing out over it. He’d collected the businessman’s flowers during his lunch break, so all he needed to do before going to pick up his date was wash and change.  
As for the actual date, he promised himself it would go perfectly. He’d gone over everything in his mind so many times over the past few days that it was impossible for anything to go wrong--he’d even worked out the best route to take between his and Hyunwoo’s apartments, and from his date’s place to the car park near the restaurant, so they wouldn’t be delayed by busy traffic.

It took the cleaner precisely fifty minutes to do everything he needed to do. He’d taken a shower with a warm-scented body wash, changed into his clothes and picked out a nice belt with a diamante-covered buckle to accentuate the outfit. The cleaner even had time to style his hair - something he hadn’t made much effort over for a long time.  
Calmly, he took up the bouquet he would give Hyunwoo and walked down to his car.  
Only when he set the flowers on the passenger seat did Minhyuk realise the one thing he’d overlooked: in the boot and on the backseat of his car were all the cleaning items he used for his day-job. The cleaner couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of them!  
Grabbing one of the boxes, he hurried back up the stairs to his apartment. It wasn’t impossible to leave them in his car; there was enough space for both Hyunwoo and himself to sit in the front seats. But having cleaning implements in the back seat was hardly romantic. Also what if - though Minhyuk thought it highly unlikely - they wanted to make use of the back seat?  
Unlocking his apartment door and shoving the box inside, the cleaner ran back down to the car park to get everything else.

 

Hyunwoo was trying to remain calm, though his heart betrayed him as it thudded heavily in his chest. It had just gone 7.45, the time Minhyuk was meant to pick him up--so where was he?  
Of course, the cleaner could well have been held up, the businessman reasoned with himself. The roads in the area were notorious for traffic jams and besides, Minhyuk was only two minutes late so far!  
Pacing his living room, Hyunwoo tried not to look at the clock. Everything would be fine, he told himself. Minhyuk would arrive soon and they’d go for a nice dinner and...  
“Oh God...” Hyunwoo whined aloud. What if the cleaner expected to come in for ‘coffee’ afterwards? Or invited him back to his apartment? That would clearly imply more than just coffee or a nice chat...  
The businessman shivered. He wasn’t adverse to the idea of being intimate with Minhyuk - the mental images it gave him were delightful - but not after only one date!  
Without thinking about it, the man looked at the clock. He gasped when he realised it was almost eight! Hyunwoo’s stomach growled but he didn’t really notice. Now he was seriously starting to worry over the cleaner’s whereabouts.  
Becoming more agitated, he paced faster up and down, drumming his fingers on his hips. What if Minhyuk had got into an accident? Whilst he was waiting, the cleaner could be unconscious in the back of an ambulance or worse! Or maybe Minhyuk had forgotten about him...  
Hyunwoo whined again; he didn’t like the idea of being forgotten, though he knew it was ridiculous: Minhyuk had seemed just as excited as he was over going on a date.  
As the minutes ticked on, Hyunwoo became more and more worried.  
Where had Minhyuk got to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I keep making dumb mistakes and have to edit the chapters endless times after they're done... I fixed it now.  
> Hope no one noticed...
> 
> Also, I would really love it if you wrote me about your thoughts in the comments! <3


	8. 08

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is too sappy, I'm sorry... I'm also sorry for the delay. College has eaten me whole.  
> Enjoy.

When the doorbell rang, Hyunwoo couldn’t get there fast enough. He yanked the door open, flooded with relief when he saw Minhyuk standing on the other side. Businessman and cleaner looked at each other for a few long, silent seconds, and then - unthinking - Hyunwoo threw himself at the smaller man, hugging him tightly.  
“It’s so good to see you, Minhyuk!” he exclaimed.  
Having expected to be asked why he was late, the cleaner was surprised at Hyunwoo’s actions. He hugged back nonetheless. “I’m sorry I’m late, I had to move some things at the last minute, then the traffic coming off of the main road was horrendous,” Minhyuk said, feeling he owed his date an explanation. When Hyunwoo had answered the door he’d looked so worried, and the cleaner knew it was his fault.  
“You’re here, that’s all that matters,” the businessman said as he pulled back, smiling.  
At that point, Minhyuk brought forth the bouquet, an arrangement of dark red roses with other, more exotic-looking blooms that he didn’t know the names of. “For you...”  
A look of delight spread across Hyunwoo’s face. “Minhyuk, they’re beautiful!” he whispered, amazed. He seriously hadn’t been expecting this. Even though the cleaner frequently put posies in his apartment, Hyunwoo hadn’t foreseen that his date would bring him an expensive-looking bouquet. He was touched. “I really ought to put them in some water! Come in for a moment won’t you?” The businessman headed off to the kitchen area, locating a spare vase and filling it with water, setting the bouquet in it. He’d arrange the flowers properly later, but right now he had the more pressing matter of his date.  
Only as he returned to Minhyuk did he take in what the other man was wearing. With his form-fitting trousers and dark blue shirt, the cleaner looked good enough to eat.  
Although liking the sight of him, it made Hyunwoo feel a little self-conscious over the outfit he was wearing - black trousers and a black long-sleeved t-shirt, smartened up with a waistcoat (yet again black, but enhanced with a silver pinstripe effect).  
“You look really good, Minhyuk,” the businessman smiled appreciatively as he put on his boots.  
The cleaner smiled back. “So do you. Especially that,” he motioned to the waistcoat, liking how it fit to the curve of his date’s back. Hyunwoo was very sexy, and his complete obliviousness to the fact made him all the more appealing.  
“It’s just something old, really,” the businessman pulled on a jacket, looking at Minhyuk and holding out his hand. “Shall we go?”  
Quite happily, the cleaner took Hyunwoo’s hand and led him out to the car.

 

The ride to the restaurant was a quiet one, peppered with short bursts of conversation. Minhyuk felt tense, trying to concentrate on driving and not worry that something might go wrong. Hyunwoo was simply nervous, still plagued with the questions and concerns he’d been bothered by for the past few days. Taking a glance at Minhyuk, the businessman detected a slight flicker of anxiety within the other’s eyes, realising that the cleaner was nervous too.  
At this, he smiled softly. “I’m glad I’m out with you, Minhyuk.”

Only when they reached the restaurant did Hyunwoo realise he’d known where it was all along.  
“Hey, I’ve been here before!” he exclaimed in surprise. “But it was a traditional place with tatami and low tables when I was here...”  
Minhyuk chuckled, holding the door open for him. “Same here! They did really good food, don’t you think?”  
“Yes! I wanted everything on the menu,” the businessman laughed as they walked up to the stand.  
“Do you have a reservation?” asked the young woman at the stand, surreptitiously eyeing the two men.  
“Yes. Under Lee,” replied Minhyuk. “We’re a few minutes late due to traffic.”  
As the woman searched the book on the stand, Hyunwoo looked around the refitted restaurant. It looked so different from how it was when he’d been there before. It was clearly under new - and much younger - management. Yet there was still some appeal to it, something about the way the bottles were displayed behind the bar, the modern patterns on the tablecloths and the soothing, coloured lights set here and there. Judging by the faces of people seated at the tables, the food was pretty good too.  
“I’m sorry, there is no Lee listed here,” the woman spoke up.  
Minhyuk’s face fell. “But I made the reservation in person,” he protested, pulse racing in alarm. “Lee Minhyuk, 8.25pm, table for two. I specifically requested a corner table.” He couldn’t believe this was happening. A date with Hyunwoo and somewhere along the lines somebody had screwed up and they didn’t have a place to eat! The businessman must think him so badly organised and unreliable, especially considering how late he was picking him up. So far the only good thing going for them on this date was that they were both alive and breathing.  
“One moment please sir,” the woman replied, returning to the book.  
Hyunwoo looked at his date in concern. Had the restaurant messed up? Disappointment was already starting to overshadow his otherwise good mood. Obviously the restaurant wasn’t a very good one if the reservation had been messed up, he told himself.  
“Oh! Here it is, 8.25pm, table for two in the corner. It was written as Lim MinYook. Please accept our apologies for the error,” she bowed, looking a little flustered. “If you would like to follow me...”  
Minhyuk sighed in relief. So it was just a spelling error. They had their reservation and all would go well.

“Somebody here can’t spell very well don’t you think, Min~Yook~?” Hyunwoo giggled a little once they were seated.  
Minhyuk rolled his eyes a little and chuckled. “For a moment back there I thought we’d be finding ourselves a McDonald’s...”  
Grinning, Hyunwoo reached over and touched his date’s hand. “That would have been okay too,” he said comfortingly. It would have been disappointing if they’d ended up at a fast food restaurant, but it would have been a date with Minhyuk all the same. Also, he reflected later on, it would have been ironic since it was in McDonald’s that the cleaner asked him out.  
Minhyuk smiled, taking the tall man’s hand between his own, starting to relax. “I wouldn’t take you for fast food and call it a dinner date.”  
“Nor would I,” the businessman agreed. “McDonald’s is for before movies. Or after.”  
“True...” the cleaner nodded, and for a few moments a silence fell between them as both searched for something more to say.  
Thankfully they were rescued when a waiter arrived, presenting them both with a smart-looking menu and taking their drink order.

“This is rather cosy,” Hyunwoo smiled across the table at Minhyuk. Ever since they’d left his apartment he’d felt a bubbling excitement in his stomach; this date was giving him such an adrenaline rush that he wanted to bounce up and down and clap his hands.  
Looking up from his menu, the cleaner nodded. “I’m glad they could still give us a corner booth...”  
Despite being a booth, it was actually only big enough to fit two or three people; this twinned with the soft seats and low lighting gave their little table an intimate, romantic atmosphere. Minhyuk hadn’t realised until now that coloured lights could be romantic.  
“Thank you for bringing me here, I...” Hyunwoo trailed off as the waiter approached. He watched quietly whilst the man set their drinks on the table and sat up a little when the waiter asked what they wanted to order. The menu offered three courses - four if he counted after-dinner coffee - so was it okay to order a starter?  
“After you, Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk said softly. He felt it proper to let his date order first, and was surprised when the man only ordered a main course. “No starter?”  
“Oh!” Hyunwoo looked sheepish. So his date didn’t mind. “In that case, I’ll have...” he looked at the menu again. “Avocado and prawns to start with, please.”  
The cleaner grinned at Hyunwoo. It seemed they had similar tastes even when it came to restaurant food. “I’ll have the same,” he told the waiter.  
Orders taken, the man disappeared off into the restaurant, leaving the couple alone.  
“I had no idea you liked avocado!” Hyunwoo exclaimed once the man had left.  
Minhyuk nodded. “I don’t eat it all that often; usually only with prawns...”  
“Me too!” the businessman began to talk animatedly about how avocado was an interesting fruit since it wasn’t very sweet at all, but really delicious with prawns Marie-Rose.  
The cleaner smiled affectionately as he listened to this, nodding in agreement at just about everything Hyunwoo said. Enjoying food rather a lot himself, he found their conversation far more engaging than the conversations on dates with others. Hyunwoo truly knew food; he appreciated it with an almost childlike wonder at times. It made Minhyuk ache to be closer to him. If they hadn’t a table between them he would have jumped onto Hyunwoo’s lap already--though he could always just pull him across it. With luck, he didn’t have a chance to give in to the temptation since their first course was delivered. Both men looked on hungrily as the plates were set upon the table.  
“This looks so nice...” Minhyuk mused. The dish was so artistically arranged that it almost seemed sinful to tuck into it.  
“Whoever is in the kitchen has to be an artist,” Hyunwoo commented.  
Lifting his eyes from the food, Minhyuk grinned. “I was just thinking that. Let’s dig in!”

Their meal continued smoothly--though not without the waiter reappearing every few minutes to check that their food was alright and ask if they wanted to order any more drinks; something that was beginning to grate on Minhyuk’s nerves.  
After their main course two creme brulee were brought to the table.  
“We didn’t order this...” Hyunwoo said in confusion, looking across at Minhyuk. Had the cleaner ordered dessert in advance?  
The taller man simply shrugged, turning to the waiter for an explanation.  
“It’s on the house. With compliments.” Bowing, the man retreated.  
“Apology for screwing up, do you think?” Hyunwoo asked when the man was gone. He broke into his unexpected dessert.  
Minhyuk savoured a mouthful of his creme brulee before answering. “Probably. It wasn’t too much of a big deal though, just embarrassing.”  
Hyunwoo nodded. “When they said your name wasn’t in the book I knew they’d screwed up somewhere along the lines. I’m glad they found their mistake.”  
“Yes. I thought my heart was going to stop beating...” Minhyuk said softly. “I hope the meal has made up for that moment of uncertainty, Hyunwoo.”  
The businessman gave his date a sunny smile. “The meal and more importantly, the company,” he said, finishing his dessert and setting down his spoon.  
Smiling back, Minhyuk leaned against the seat. “Want to order coffee?”  
Hyunwoo grinned.  
“That was a silly question, wasn’t it?” Chuckling, the cleaner signalled for the waiter.

Minhyuk and Hyunwoo sat talking over coffee for ages; though to the two men it didn’t feel like any time at all. As it got later the restaurant became emptier, until they were one of the few still left in the building. The staff members hovered around, waiting for the final groups of patrons to leave so they could clear up and go home themselves.  
“Well...” Minhyuk said at length. “I suppose it’s time we were on our way.”  
Nodding, Hyunwoo waved for the waiter. “Probably,” he smiled across at his date for what could have been the hundredth time that evening. Hyunwoo was pretty certain that he hadn’t stopped smiling in all the time they’d been sitting there, and he felt wonderful.  
“I would like the bill, please,” Minhyuk spoke up when the waiter reached them.  
“Actually,” Hyunwoo butted in. “We’re splitting fifty-fifty, so two bills, if you wouldn’t mind.”  
“Very well sir.” The waiter left before Minhyuk could say anything on the contrary.  
“Hyunwoo, I thought we agreed you’d let me pay for you,” he pouted.  
The businessman gave an innocent smile. “And we agreed that I would pay for you. Since we ate the same food, the cost is the same.”  
“But we didn’t drink the same things.”  
“It doesn’t make a difference,” Hyunwoo reasoned.  
With a slight playful roll of his eyes and a smile, Minhyuk assented. “Alright. But next time, we’ll do it completely fairly.”  
“Hey, what’s fairer than fifty-fifty?” the businessman grinned.  
Minhyuk chuckled. He was secretly appreciative that his date wanted to split the bill. Although the cleaner wanted to play the gallant gentleman and pay for everything, dates like this were a bit of a strain on his salary--not that the tall man wasn’t worth every won spent.

Having paid the bill, the pair wandered outside. They’d barely walked three paces from the door before Hyunwoo slipped his hand into Minhyuk’s, linking their fingers together. The evening, filled with its good food, soft lighting, wonderful company and great conversation, had put the businessman in a romantic mood and he wanted it to last forever. So he felt a little sad as they entered the car park: in twenty minutes he’d be home, having to say goodbye.  
Minhyuk didn’t like the melancholy expression that had found its way onto the tall man’s face. Reaching the car, he stopped and turned Hyunwoo to face him. The businessman looked down at him questioningly, though the expression melted away when Minhyuk’s lips pressed gently against his. Hyunwoo sighed softly into the kiss, hands lifting to rest lightly on the other’s hips. The kiss itself did not last for long, but the feeling it gave Hyunwoo was astounding. His whole being felt as though it was buzzing, and hungrily he leaned in for another kiss. Braver than before, he parted his lips a little, silently inviting Minhyuk to go deeper. The cleaner willingly complied, tentatively licking at the other’s lips before sliding his tongue inside, coaxing the other’s to play. Letting out a soft groan, Hyunwoo clung tighter to Minhyuk, nudging his tongue against the slender man’s and blindly pushing him against the car, pressing their bodies together. Grabbing holds of Hyunwoo’s shoulders, Minhyuk kissed back with passion.

Breathless, they broke apart. Hyunwoo smiled sheepishly at his date, face flushed and breathing slightly laboured. Minhyuk was in a similar state, both delighted and intoxicated by the taste. As the businessman stepped back, Minhyuk pushed away from the car, finally unlocking it.  
“After-dinner kisses,” Hyunwoo commented with a grin, climbing into the passenger seat when the cleaner held the door for him. “I like those very much.”  
Minhyuk smirked at the other’s cheesy-sounding line. “As do I,” he replied, leaning in to steal another quick kiss before closing the door.

The journey back to Hyunwoo’s apartment was filled with more tension than the drive out. Although the two of them chatted about random things, both were distracted by their own thoughts. Minhyuk found himself reflecting on how the businessman had changed as they kissed: one moment a little timid but dominant the next. He shivered as he recalled how Hyunwoo had sandwiched him between the car and himself, and the fire in his passionate kiss. The cleaner knew that Hyunwoo hadn’t been on a date in a while--the other man had told him so during one of their previous conversations. Minhyuk supposed that having a date and being kissed after nothing for so long must be like bursting a dam. Whether Hyunwoo’s behaviour had been pent-up need and affection or had been a secret side of the man showing through, he was glad he’d been at the receiving end of it.

Just like Minhyuk, Hyunwoo was thinking about the kisses they’d just shared. The cleaner tasted nice; his lips and mouth had been warm and soft. Hyunwoo could have sworn he’d melted into him, if only for an instant. Minhyuk had kissed back as intensely as him; the businessman couldn’t help but wonder if the slender blonde was similarly passionate in other ways... Which brought him back to an older train of thought: what if Minhyuk wanted to come in? After their date, Hyunwoo was hardly adverse to the idea of the cleaner staying the night--be it innocently or not-so-innocently. Though he knew if it was the latter, he’d end up feeling cheap and sleazy no matter how much he liked Minhyuk. No, he decided. Sex wasn’t a course on the menu for a first date.

At length, Minhyuk’s car drew up outside the businessman’s apartment building.  
“Well...” they both spoke up at the same time, smiling and giggling at each other.  
“After you,” the cleaner said.  
“No, after you,” Hyunwoo argued. Both giggled again and the businessman smiled affectionately. “I had a really good time tonight, Minhyuk.” He reached out and placed his hand over Minhyuk’s, on the steering wheel. “Really.”  
“I did too,” the cleaner placed his free hand over Hyunwoo’s. “Really really.”  
This made Hyunwoo grin. “Well I enjoyed myself really really really!”  
“I liked your company really really really really,” Minhyuk countered with a smile. “We’ll be here all night if we keep this up...”  
“I suppose I should say goodbye, then...” Hyunwoo looked at Minhyuk with wide, dark eyes, every bit the vulnerable-looking young man that the cleaner knew Hyunwoo wasn’t.  
Minhyuk leaned in and kissed the other briefly. “May I walk you to your door?” he asked softly.  
Hyunwoo beamed. Few of his dates had ever taken this step, despite it being one of the big dating cliches. “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t!”  
“Then I shall,” the cleaner grinned a little as they got out of the car. “And if there is a puddle, I shall lay my cloak across it so you do not dirty your boots.”  
Hyunwoo laughed, linking hands with his date. The cleaner had the talent of making him laugh and smile, which made him like the man even more.  
They chatted and joked all the way to the businessman’s front door, light-hearted and content with the way the evening turned out.  
“Tonight was really great,” Minhyuk spoke up, watching Hyunwoo unlock the door.  
Pushing the door open, Hyunwoo smiled and turned to him. “Yeah. We should do it again sometime... I like you, Minhyuk. Lots.”  
“I like you a lot, too,” replied the cleaner, stepping in close again and linking his fingers with the other man’s. He really hoped they didn’t go back to simply being client and employee after this.  
“Then we have to see each other again,” Hyunwoo stated. “It’s a must!”  
Minhyuk smiled. “I think so too.”  
“Goodnight, Minhyukie.”  
The cleaner found the businessman was looking at him with the expression of a hopeful puppy. Simultaneously the two came together, lips meeting in a gentle goodnight kiss.  
“Goodnight, Hyunwoo...” Minhyuk murmured softly when they parted.  
“See you soon,” the businessman smiled. As Minhyuk walked away, Hyunwoo leaned against the doorframe and watched until the other’s slim form had disappeared down the stairwell. That last kiss had been the perfect end to the evening: lingering and promising of many more in the future.  
With a happy sigh, Hyunwoo retreated into his apartment, ready to go to bed and dream of a man named Minhyuk who was slowly conquering his heart.


	9. 09

For the first ten minutes after waking on the day following their date, Hyunwoo simply remained snuggled beneath his quilt, luxuriating in the memory of the evening before. It had been wonderful: everything he could have hoped for a first date. Flowers, a romantic setting, brilliant conversation and a memorable goodnight kiss...  
Unfortunately reality kicked in when the alarm clock went off, reminding the businessman that he had a job to go to.  
Feeling a little like he was floating, he got out of bed and went to shower.

Before he left for work that day, Hyunwoo arranged the bouquet that Minhyuk had presented to him--which didn’t take too much effort, since it was already beautifully pieced together within the cellophane and ribbons. The last thing he did was set out the notebook. Within it, he wrote a note to the cleaner and then, late for work, he ran out of the apartment.

 

Minhyuk, as you can see I put it out again! It would be nice to talk here once more, don’t you think?  
Thank you for last night, I had the best evening ever! Are you free sometime soon? I want to take you out this time! - Hyunwoo  
The note caused a big smile to form on the cleaner’s lips. He’d been happy enough to see the notebook on the kitchen table again, so discovering a note talking of a second date made him even happier. Hyunwoo had been more forward over the past few days but Minhyuk liked it.  
Eagerly, he wrote a reply, detailing the free time he had over the next week or so. He was undeniably pleased that the businessman had taken the step to suggest another date, having been in far too many relationships in the past where he’d had to make every decision and initiate everything himself. Minhyuk couldn’t wait to gain a reply from Hyunwoo; he knew he could call or send a message, but felt it would ruin the fun of talking through the notebook. Besides, Hyunwoo would see his response when he returned home that evening and if it was really important to reply, the businessman would send a text message himself. Minhyuk would just have to be patient and wait for the other man to respond.

 

Hyunwoo’s good mood that day was unbeatable. His supervisor, as grumpy as Hyunwoo was cheerful, had berated him, yet the businessman had simply put up with it, the words passing between his ears.  
Hyunwoo didn’t care about whether his supervisor thought he was a slacker or a bad worker, because Minhyuk liked him. When he reached the cafeteria at lunchtime to find out the coffee machine was broken, he wasn’t all that bothered, because the memory of talking over coffee in a romantic setting with Minhyuk would be just enough to sustain him until he got home and could make himself some. Even being crammed onto the commuter train at the end of the day didn’t frustrate him, though he wished it was Minhyuk he was squashed up against rather than an old businessman with bad breath.

Finding the reply from Minhyuk improved his day immensely, though it seemed their schedules didn’t match up very well. Generally it was the evenings that they both had free, which was all well and good so long as neither of them had to get up early the next morning--which of course they did. Thankfully there was one Sunday that both Hyunwoo and Minhyuk had free; the businessman was quick to write Minhyuk another few lines asking him if he wanted to do something on that day.

What do you think, a theme park? A zoo? Or something else? And I want to pay for everything this time!  
Minhyuk wrote an acceptance to the invitation without even thinking of what he would prefer to do. Both of Hyunwoo’s suggestions sounded like fun.  
Either a theme park or a trip to the zoo would be great, he ended up adding to his note. Since you insist on paying, you choose. So as not to make the note sound too abrupt, he ended it with a smiley.

 

Although being excited that the cleaner had accepted his invitation, Hyunwoo was disappointed that they couldn’t arrange anything sooner. It had been bad enough having to wait for a week, this time it would be a whole three and a half weeks before he and Minhyuk went on their next date! If it wasn’t for his job they’d be able to go on a date in just a few days time--but Hyunwoo had a mandatory training course to attend. The next week his day off had changed since the usual Sunday was taken up with a continuation of the training course. As for the week after that, the firm had chosen that Sunday to be the day of the annual company trip out. Usually they all went to a hot spring; the idea of the company trip was to encourage camaraderie between peers and thank employees for the past year’s hard work. Although the trip was optional, it was frowned upon for workers to decline the company’s kind gesture.  
So three and a half weeks it was, and Hyunwoo took comfort in the fact he could text or call Minhyuk before then. He hoped they’d have an opportunity to meet sooner, even if it was just for a little while.  
Making the decision over where they would go was difficult; the businessman had suggested either a theme park or a zoo because they were both a lot of fun, also appropriate places for a date. A zoo had cute animals and a relaxed atmosphere, but a theme park had exciting rides and entertainment. Both places tended to serve a variety of food, be it stall food or candy. In either place, Hyunwoo could picture the cleaner and himself walking around, hands entwined: content.

 

The businessman was interrupted from his dinner by the phone ringing. With a sigh he got up to answer it, just in case it was someone important.  
“Son speaking.”  
“Hyunwoo sweetie!” Hyewon trilled down the phone. “How is my boy?”  
“Mum!” Hyunwoo blinked in surprise, carrying the phone over to the kitchen table and sitting back in front of his meal. “I’m fine, what brings you to call?”  
“You’re not going to ask after my health?” the woman asked playfully.  
“How are you, Mum?” the man asked with a chuckle.  
“Wonderful!” Mrs. Son replied. “And how is Minhyuk?”  
“He’s fine too,” Hyunwoo told her, starting to eat again.  
“Great! Anyway sweetie, I called because there’s a family gathering soon, to celebrate cousin Joohyuk’s engagement. I thought you might want to come along.”  
“Really? That’s great Mum. I’ll come if I can get time off work.”  
“You could bring Minhyuk too if you wanted...”  
Hyunwoo whined. “I thought you were going to stop playing Cupid.”  
“Am I playing Cupid?” Hyewon asked innocently. “I was merely inviting your ‘friend’ along too. So you don’t have to travel alone, sweetheart.”  
“Right. How is Dad?”  
“He’s doing just great!”  
“That’s good to hear...Well if that’s all Mum, I need to get going...” the businessman picked at his food.  
“So we’ll see you in three weeks?”  
“Huh?”  
“The gathering. It’s on the Sunday.”  
The businessman let out a groan. “I can’t come...”  
“Why not? Already busy? ...do you have a date, my little Hyunwoo?” Hyewon teased.  
“Yes, I’m busy,” Hyunwoo tried to sidestep the question.  
“Busy with Minhyuk?” From the sound of her voice, Hyunwoo’s mother was grinning like an idiot.  
Hyunwoo rolled his eyes to himself. “Actually, yes. We’re going to hang out someplace.”  
“Ooh!” Mrs. Son giggled. “Where are you going?”  
Trying not to snap at her for prying again, Hyunwoo answered, “A zoo or a theme park, probably.”  
“How exciting!” Hyewon exclaimed. “Did you watch the news yesterday? Seoul Grand Park welcomed some panda cubs into the world!”  
The businessman smiled. Baby animals were so cute! “That’s nice,” he agreed. “I missed the news yesterday; maybe they’ll run the story again tonight.”  
“They were adorable!” Mrs. Son squealed a little. “Right, sweetie, I have to go. Don’t be a stranger!”  
“Alright Mum. Love you.”  
“Love you too sweetie. Enjoy your dinner!”  
Hyunwoo chuckled. “Sure. Bye Mama.”  
When he hung up the phone, Hyunwoo grinned. Thanks to his mother, he’d reached a decision: he would take Minhyuk to the zoo.

 

The days seemed to get busier, but the long, hard, slog of each workday began, Hyunwoo had his eye on his calendar--specifically upon the day close to the end of the month, when he would see Minhyuk. They would go out, see some cute animals, have a nice lunch and do lots of other date things. Hyunwoo was looking forward to eating ice cream with Minhyuk, walking closely beneath an umbrella if it rained, sitting side by side, and watching the world pass by as though it were a visitor attraction in itself. He wanted all this and more, and could barely wait to see the other man again.  
It was difficult; Hyunwoo was half tempted to call in sick just so he could spend a day with Minhyuk instead. Though he knew better than to do that--knowing his luck he’d bump into his manager or supervisor whilst out.  
If he had more time, Hyunwoo would ask the cleaner to spend time with him so much more frequently. But due to the new account that his department had secured, everyone was working late into the evening to keep up with the extra workload and impress the new clients. For now, the businessman would simply have to wait.

 

Minhyuk was having a tough time waiting for the date. He wasn’t normally impatient, but since the first times he’d spent with the businessman, he’d been craving more of the other’s company. It was only natural for two people with feelings for each other to want to be together. Besides a few notes in the old notebook, the only way Hyunwoo or the cleaner had contacted each other was via text message--and it was due to those that Minhyuk was still able to continue about his daily routine (in which cleaning and walking Saya featured most prominently). Those messages were starting to become part of his routine too; Minhyuk had never used his phone so much in his life until he met Hyunwoo.  
Two weeks had passed since their first date and despite the messages, the cleaner didn’t want to wait any longer to see the other man again. True, it was early days, and he knew that if he wanted to form a proper relationship with the other man he’d need to nurture it like a delicate flower. Yet he missed Hyunwoo so much it hurt.  
Finally giving in, Minhyuk sent the businessman a message, simply asking if he wanted to come along with him to walk the dog. It wouldn’t count as a date, the cleaner thought. Just two men that like each other walking through a park together with a pet. Simple.

The text message made Hyunwoo moody. He received it just as he was about to go into a meeting, and would much rather spend the next hour in a darkened park with Minhyuk than in a boardroom, going over concepts and figures. Despite being fast at typing on his phone, the businessman didn’t have time to write out a satisfactory explanation for why he couldn’t accept Minhyuk’s invitation, so he called him instead.

“Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk answered the phone cheerfully. “Are you able to come?”  
“I’m sorry, I’ve got to attend a meeting in five minutes,” the businessman replied apologetically.  
“Oh.” Disappointment stabbed at the cleaner’s heart.  
“I’m sorry.” Hyunwoo sighed. “If I could get out of it I would. Being with you is much more fun and it’s been ages since we saw each other.”  
“It’s okay, please don’t worry about it.” Hearing that the other was just as frustrated as himself, Minhyuk tried to soothe the man. “We will see each other soon. I’m looking forward to our date.”  
“So am I...” across the office, Hyunwoo spotted his supervisor waiting, and let out another sigh. “I have to go now. They’re waiting for me.”  
“Alright, well have a good meeting.”  
“Hah, yeah...” the businessman chuckled, voice softening. “I miss you, Minhyuk,” he admitted.  
The cleaner felt a twinge of longing at the other’s words. “I miss you too.”

 

The meeting was as boring as could be expected, though Hyunwoo was grateful when it didn’t run for as long as he thought it would. The management approved of the ideas and figures that were brought up, and - rather surprisingly - it was Hyunwoo who was put in charge of the new project, since his supervisor was already busy with another. The businessman was amazed; of everyone in his department he would have thought he was the last person to be put in charge!

Hyunwoo had always felt that if his father hadn’t been golfing buddies with the company president, he’d never have been given the job. But now he had a brilliant chance to prove himself. The businessman was determined to succeed.  
Something he was even more determined to do, however, was see Minhyuk. Since the meeting didn’t last so long, Hyunwoo hoped the cleaner might not have taken Saya out yet, or would still be in the park. Then he could go and see him for a little while.  
The work day finally at an end, Hyunwoo went outside and called the cleaner for the second time that day.

“Hello?” the slender man answered his phone after a few rings.  
“Hey, Minhyuk, it’s me again.”  
“Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk smiled, happy to hear the other’s voice once again.  
“Have you walked Saya yet?”  
“Yes. We just got home,” the cleaner replied, sitting down on his sofa.  
Hyunwoo pouted. Even though the meeting was short, he’d still missed a chance of spending time with the taller man. “Damn. My meeting just finished.”  
“We can walk Saya together on another day,” Minhyuk placated the businessman. He sympathised with Hyunwoo; having to work such long hours had to be difficult. The fact that the shorter man employed him to clean was proof enough that he didn’t get enough time to himself--Hyunwoo was far from being a lazy person, as Minhyuk had learnt from experience.  
“I hope so. Things have been even busier at the office since we got that new client. The crazy thing is, in the meeting...” Hyunwoo frowned, still unable to quite believe it himself. “They put me in charge of the project.”  
Minhyuk smiled. “Hyunwoo, that’s great!”  
“That I’ll get even less time to myself?” the businessman asked a little snappily.  
“No,” the cleaner’s smile turned to a pout. Hyunwoo was obviously a little sulky over his lack of spare time. “It’s great that your company trusts you enough to put you in charge. I’m proud of you.”  
This turned Hyunwoo’s mood around and he smiled to himself, feeling all warm inside. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, Minhyuk,” he said, tone humble. “...Have you eaten yet?”  
“Not yet, I was going to make something in a moment. And please, don’t worry about it. You must be tired after working all day.”  
“Yeah, a little...” the businessman agreed. “Want to meet up for dinner? Noodles or McDonald’s or something?”  
Minhyuk silently sent out a prayer to whichever deity was listening, thanking them for this little invitation. “I’d love to.”

 

Minhyuk hadn’t quite prepared himself for the tight hug that the businessman gave him when they met up. Though considering the way Hyunwoo had kissed him in the car park before, the cleaner didn’t know why he was surprised. He returned the hug gladly, not really wanting to let go.  
“I’m so happy to see you!” Hyunwoo exclaimed, smiling brightly as he pulled back. He motioned to the small noodle bar nearby. “Let’s go in.”  
No matter how radiant the other’s smile, Minhyuk couldn’t help but notice the dark circles under Hyunwoo’s eyes. “You look tired,” he commented quietly as he followed the other man into the restaurant.  
Hyunwoo smiled again. “I am. Work has hardly allowed me much time to sleep recently.”  
“I’m sorry. You know... If there’s anything I can do to help out more...”  
Hyunwoo shook his head. “It’s fine. I feel better just by seeing you.”  
Unexpectedly, Minhyuk blushed; the surprising words causing him to feel like his insides were melting into a gooey mess. “That’s sweet,” he stated softly, slipping his hand into Hyunwoo’s and lacing their fingers together.  
The businessman grinned a little, squeezing Minhyuk’s hand. “Just fact.”

The hour they spent together was enough to satiate their hunger for each other’s company. In a week and a half, they’d be able to spend an entire day together which would be even better.  
They parted with a quick kiss goodbye - they were in too public and busy a place for anything more, much to both men’s disappointment - and headed to their respective homes feeling more at ease with the world.

 

Minhyuk was glad he’d had a chance to see Hyunwoo again before their second date. He wanted the man so badly, craved seeing him so much and ached so terribly when they were apart or he hadn’t heard from him for a few hours. At first the cleaner thought this was bordering on obsession, but the little kiss goodbye and the sensation it gave him caused Minhyuk to think differently.  
Maybe Hyewon’s flower book had been right: he had fallen just a little bit in love with Hyunwoo.  
And if things continued the way they were going, he would only fall deeper.

 

The days leading up to the date were filled with anxiety for Hyunwoo. The first deadline of the project was looming, and he was terrified that management would ask the team working on it - including Hyunwoo - to go in on the Sunday to ensure it was finished on time. If that happened, the businessman didn’t know what he’d do. He could hardly refuse his managers, nor could he cancel on Minhyuk--not after both of them had been waiting so long.  
Motivated to get the work done, Hyunwoo’s enthusiasm for the project had doubled, which in turn encouraged the rest of the team. By some miracle, the work was completed Friday morning. Pleased with the results, the team was given the Saturday off - fully paid - as a reward.  
Hyunwoo knew exactly how he wanted to spend it.

 

“Who is the most awesome person in the world for beating the big scary deadline?”  
Hyunwoo’s words made Minhyuk laugh. “Hyunwoo?” he grinned into the phone.  
“Damn right!” the businessman giggled. “Who has happy management that gave him the entire weekend off for being such a great employee?”  
“You?” The cheer in Hyunwoo’s voice was infectious, and Minhyuk found himself smiling broadly as he walked the aisle of the supermarket. Several people looked at him strangely, but he ignored them.  
“Yes!” Hyunwoo cheered. “And who do I want to invite over for pizza and movies tonight as there’s no work tomorrow?”  
Minhyuk smirked. “Your manager?” he asked playfully.  
The businessman pouted. “You, silly Minhyuk!”  
“I’d love to,” the cleaner chuckled. “Though I’ll need to walk Saya first.”  
“Great! If you want to come over around seven we’ll make an evening of it,” Hyunwoo smiled. “Also, I was wondering if you wanted to change our date to Saturday? Seeing as its sooner...”  
“I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.”  
“Cool. Well, my lunch break is almost up, so I’ve got to go. See you later!”  
“See you later.” Minhyuk hung up the phone with a grin. A whole evening with Hyunwoo, what more could he ask for?

After work, Minhyuk walked Saya faster than he usually did, petting her a little more than usual to thank her for her lenience – and then headed to Hyunwoo’s.  
“Good timing, the pizza is almost ready,” Hyunwoo grinned when he let the cleaner into his apartment.  
Minhyuk smiled, reaching to kiss the taller man on the cheek as he stepped inside. “I brought drinks, too,” he said, showing him the paper bag in his hands.  
“That’s great,” Hyunwoo nodded in approval. “But don’t think you’re going to get away with walking in just with that.”  
“Just with this?” Minhyuk looked at the bottles inside the bag in confusion. Had Hyunwoo said to bring something else?  
Then Hyunwoo’s lips pressed upon his and the cleaner understood.

 

“This is a good movie...” Finished with his pizza, Hyunwoo set his empty plate on the table beside the cleaner’s. “I bet those two will get together by the end, though,” he pointed to the two characters on the screen.  
Minhyuk giggled. “I think so too.”  
Only five minutes further into the movie, the two characters that the businessman referred to shared a passionate on-screen kiss.  
Hyunwoo laughed. “That was predictable. Cute, though.”  
“Like you,” the cleaner commented softly.  
The businessman smiled, wrapping his arms around Minhyuk and pulling him closer. “You too.”  
Minhyuk smiled back and kissed him gently on the lips. “You’re cuter though,” he stated in a voice that suggested he wouldn’t be persuaded otherwise.  
“Okay...”  
The cleaner tentatively rested his head on Hyunwoo’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around the man’s waist, smug that he agreed with him.  
“...but you’re more handsome,” the businessman added. In truth, he found Minhyuk not so much handsome as beautiful. With his full lips, slender figure and soft skin, the cleaner was like a fairytale prince. Hyunwoo had always thought the ‘handsome prince’ in fairytales sounded pretty rather than handsome. Handsome was a term he found best applied to an attractive, yet far more masculine man. Minhyuk had an air of effeminacy about him that contributed to his beauty. “Beautiful,” he added.  
“As are you,” the cleaner replied, nuzzling against Hyunwoo’s neck.  
“I thought I was cute,” the businessman pouted good-naturedly.  
“Mm, cute and beautiful.”  
“Just as you’re handsome and beautiful. And cute,” Hyunwoo smirked.  
Minhyuk let out a quiet laugh, lifting his head to kiss him. “Let’s agree that you’re a gorgeous man and be done with it.”  
“Only if we also agree that you’re gorgeous yourself!”  
“If it makes you happy...”  
“It does.”  
“Alright then.” Minhyuk kissed the businessman again before returning his head to the other’s shoulder once more.

Minhyuk woke up inexplicably, eyes fluttering open to gaze around the TV-lit room. His arm felt dead and after a few moments of semi-conscious reasoning he realised it was probably because said arm was beneath Hyunwoo, who had proved to be a comfortable pillow. The cleaner didn’t recall falling asleep; the last thing he remembered was being held against Hyunwoo, with his head on the businessman’s shoulder as they watched the film. Now the movie had ended and the TV had returned to the menu screen. The time on his phone told him it had gone midnight.  
Minhyuk looked at Hyunwoo to find him asleep. The sight awoke the flurry of butterflies in his stomach and he remembered the businessman’s mother telling him that Hyunwoo didn’t sleep easily around other people. Yet the man seemed to be doing just fine, here with him.  
With his free hand, the cleaner stroked Hyunwoo’s hair. He didn’t want to wake him; Hyunwoo always looked tired and the cleaner knew that he didn’t sleep enough. But his arm was starting to hurt from being trapped for so long. Carefully, Minhyuk withdrew it, minding not to awaken the businessman. Then he slowly stood up, stretching to alleviate the aches in his back from having been curled on the sofa for so long.  
There, he’d managed to get up without waking Hyunwoo.  
“...Minhyuk?”  
Or maybe not, the cleaner realised. He turned back to the gravelly voice. “Sorry, did I wake you?”  
“No...” Hyunwoo yawned, sitting up and running a hand through his hair. “It must be late. Last time I looked at the clock it was half past ten.”  
“It’s gone midnight now,” Minhyuk replied, kneeling down beside the sofa.  
“You’re staying over, aren’t you?” the businessman asked, gazing at the cleaner sleepily. Minhyuk had fallen asleep against him earlier that evening and he hadn’t had the heart to disturb him. Besides, he’d enjoyed having the cleaner’s soft, warm body relaxed against his own.  
Minhyuk smiled faintly. “If you want me to,” he answered. Still sleepy, he was too tired to think about driving home and from what he recalled, Hyunwoo’s floor didn’t make too much of an uncomfortable bed.  
Leaning in, Hyunwoo nipped lightly at the cleaner’s lips. “Of course I do. We need to be rested before going to the zoo!”  
With that, he stood up and led Minhyuk into his bedroom.  
“I’ll find you some pyjamas, like before,” Hyunwoo went to his drawers. “You washed the last pair so nicely,” he joked mildly, though the sleepy tone didn’t leave his voice.  
Minhyuk chuckled. “I’ll get some blankets.”  
Hyunwoo looked up at him in surprise. “Whatever for? I’m not going to make you sleep on the floor.” He threw a spare pair of pyjamas at the cleaner and pulled back the duvet on the bed.  
“I wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Minhyuk replied sheepishly.  
“Minhyuk, you were asleep on top of me earlier. It isn’t much different.”  
The cleaner was amazed at how matter-of-fact Hyunwoo could be. “I guess so,” he agreed.  
“Plus,” Hyunwoo pointed out, “My mum isn’t around to make a big deal of it.”  
“Even better,” Minhyuk smiled. He had no qualms about the idea of sleeping beside the other man if he wasn’t bothered about it.  
Hyunwoo chuckled and patted the cleaner’s back. “Off to the bathroom with you. There’s a new toothbrush in the cabinet.”  
“Thanks.” Feeling relaxed and sleepy, Minhyuk wandered off to the bathroom.

Soon, both were tucked in Hyunwoo’s bed, tiredness slowly winning the battle against them.  
“Sleep well, Hyunwoo...” Minhyuk murmured, closing his eyes.  
“Yep! Got a date with a lovely man tomorrow,” the businessman smiled to himself.  
“Lucky man...”  
“Lucky me,” Hyunwoo chuckled. “Night, Minhyuk.”  
The cleaner smiled. “Goodnight, Hyunwoo.”  
Ten minutes later, Hyunwoo rolled over, tentatively wrapped an arm around Minhyuk’s waist, and let out a soft sigh.  
Half-asleep, Minhyuk pressed a kiss to the businessman’s forehead, placed his hand over Hyunwoo’s, and - certain he wouldn’t rather be anywhere else - let sleep claim him.  
Tomorrow would be a big day.


	10. 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't endorse zoos, don't go on zoo dates. This is only fine because it's fiction, lmao.
> 
> Also, sorry that this is moving so slow... please, leave comments if it bothers you;;

The smell of food roused Minhyuk from his slumber. Stretching out in Hyunwoo’s bed, he opened his eyes to find the other wasn’t there. However, within moments he caught the sound of the businessman humming cheerfully and the sizzling of something cooking.  
Pushing back the sheets, the cleaner got up and padded into the kitchen. Hyunwoo looked up and smiled when he saw him. “I thought we’d have pancakes for breakfast!” He nodded to the pile of them keeping warm under the grill.  
“Delicious,” Minhyuk smiled back, crossing the kitchen to give Hyunwoo a kiss. “Need my help with anything?”  
“Nothing at all! I’m just finishing this last one.” Hyunwoo gave him a quick hug, then set to work transferring the pancakes to plates.  
Minhyuk watched all this with a smile. The businessman seemed quite homely this morning; not only was it endearing but it seemed quite natural. As they sat down at the table and started to eat, Minhyuk realised he wouldn’t mind doing this every day.

Before they went to the zoo, they stopped by the cleaner’s apartment so he could get changed and feed Saya. All the guest spaces in the parking lot were taken, so Hyunwoo drove around the block whilst Minhyuk ran up the stairs and fed his beloved pet.  
Soon enough they were back on the road and heading towards the zoo.  
“You have such a great car...” Minhyuk mused, running his hand along the imitation-walnut dashboard.  
The businessman smiled a little. “It’s a company car. I rarely drive it--it’s so much easier to take a train to work. What with the bad traffic I’d have to leave my place even earlier if I wanted to drive.”  
Minhyuk nodded understandingly. At rush hour the traffic tended to be awful, especially in the business districts. “Do you ever drive out into the countryside, just to enjoy driving?”  
“I don’t have time, usually. Maybe you and I could go for a drive sometime?”  
“...tomorrow?” the cleaner asked tentatively. He didn’t want to take up all of Hyunwoo’s weekend, but the two of them had originally planned to go out on Sunday so he was hoping the businessman still had the day free.  
“Alright,” Hyunwoo nodded. “We’ll take a long drive out of the city. Somewhere nice.”

 

“Oh look!” Minhyuk gasped softly, pointing into the panda enclosure. In a corner sat a fully grown giant panda, and snuggled against it were two dozy-looking cubs.  
Hyunwoo looked over and beamed. “They’re so cute!” he exclaimed, unconsciously leaning a little closer to the adorable view.  
“They really are,” Minhyuk nodded, smiling a little and considered that Hyunwoo was just as cute - if not cuter - than the panda cubs, all big and soft with his puffy smile.  
They’d been at the zoo no less than an hour and already seen all kinds of animals - elephants swinging their trunks as they roamed their enclosure, agile monkeys and proud lions to name but a few. It had been years since Minhyuk had been to a zoo and he was fully enjoying seeing so many amazing wild animals again. Furthermore, he was enjoying Hyunwoo’s company.  
They stood and watched the pandas for a few minutes; the animals weren’t very active since they all seemed rather sleepy. After a while they continued through the zoo, arms linked.  
“Let’s go to the Tiger forest!” Hyunwoo exclaimed after a moment, spotting a sign. “Have you seen it? You can get really close to the tigers, if you’re lucky!”  
“Tiger forest?” Minhyuk arched an eyebrow. “A forest full of tigers?”  
Hyunwoo chuckled. “Not literally. Well, kind of. But there’s glass in the way to stop people getting eaten.”  
“I’m glad to hear that,” Minhyuk said, amused.  
“Mm...” Hyunwoo stopped to read a notice about the tigers. “They have Sumatran tigers here! I didn’t realise.”  
“Critically endangered, with only five to six hundred left in the wild,” Minhyuk read another part of the sign, pouting a little. “It’s a shame. You would think humanity would learn to preserve the world’s wildlife, rather than hunt it into extinction.”  
The businessman nodded, inadvertedly squeezing Minhyuk’s arm. His compassion was touching and it made Hyunwoo want to hold the cleaner and never let go.  
“We’ll see if we can spot some,” he smiled, leading Minhyuk towards the huge enclosure.

It took ten minutes, but eventually they spotted a tiger peering through the trees. Despite its mainly ginger coat, it was quite well-camouflaged amongst the foliage. Minhyuk crouched down, watching it.  
The tiger stretched languidly and plodded from between the trees, sniffing here and there at the ground and nudging against rocks and tree-stumps.  
“It’s pretty...” Hyunwoo commented, crouching beside the other man.  
“It’s coming over,” Minhyuk smiled delightedly as the powerful animal padded up to the glass.  
For a moment, the eyes of the cleaner and the tiger met, and Minhyuk placed his hand lightly on the glass. “Amazing...” he said, voice softened in reverence. “To think that one day these creatures may no longer walk the planet...”  
The businessman nodded again and wrapped an arm around Minhyuk’s shoulders.  
Stretching out by the glass, the tiger gave a huge yawn, displaying an impressive set of teeth. By now, word that an animal was close to the glass had got around and more people were coming over. Reluctantly the two men stood and moved aside. Minhyuk was disappointed that they couldn’t stay there longer, but seeing the tiger so close had made his day. As they walked away, he slipped his hand into Hyunwoo’s and squeezed gently.  
“I’m having a great time. Thank you.”  
The businessman smiled brightly. “There’s a lot more to see yet, Minhyuk! But first, shall we stop for lunch?”

The zoo’s cafe was nearby so they decided it was the best place to eat. Going inside, Hyunwoo made the cleaner sit down whilst he went and bought something for them. They had a small disagreement over this: Minhyuk had wanted to pay his own way, but the businessman had refused. After all, he’d stipulated that he would be paying for everything, and there’d been no complaint before. Minhyuk had tried to reason that he was being polite, but Hyunwoo grinned at him and told him if he was being polite, he’d accept his generosity and could pay him back in kisses. This won the disagreement and Minhyuk had sat down, trying to look grumpy--though it didn’t take long for his lips to curve into a grin. Repaying Hyunwoo with kisses was something the cleaner was certain he could manage.

Soon they’d eaten lunch and were wandering around the zoo again. They stopped to admire the 17th century teahouse and headed through an area the zone called ‘Gorilla Woods’. There they saw a great black gorilla who sat near the edge of the pen watching the zoo visitors as closely as they watched him. Hyunwoo thought it was cute, though a little scary to imagine how strong and vicious the animal could be if provoked.

The two men ended up at the Children’s petting zoo. Hyunwoo went straight in and up to a miniature horse, which nuzzled his side as though looking for mints. Minhyuk thought it was rather sweet, and took a picture with his phone.  
“Cute,” he spoke up, joining his date and showing him the photo.  
Hyunwoo laughed at this, pulling out his own mobile phone. “Hey, I’ll take a picture of you, too.”  
“With a donkey?” Minhyuk asked hopefully. He liked the steadfast, quiet animals.  
“If that’s what you want!” The businessman gave the little horse one last pat before joining Minhyuk by the donkeys.  
The cleaner happily posed for the picture, arm around the donkey’s neck. All the while the docile animal stood there, tail swishing at flies.

It was close to four in the afternoon when the pair decided to leave the zoo. They’d walked for what felt like miles and seen countless different species of mammal, bird and reptile.  
As they reached the exit, Hyunwoo let out a groan, feeling in his pockets. “I’ve lost my wallet!” he exclaimed. The cleaner pouted. “Want to go and look for it?”  
“I’ll have to if we’re going to get out of the car park...” the businessman sighed, pulling out his key and handing it to Minhyuk. “You go back to the car and I’ll join you as soon as I can. I’m certain I left my wallet at the cafe!”  
“I could come with you if you want. Help you look?”  
“No, just go to the car!” Hyunwoo replied abrasively.  
Taken aback, Minhyuk nodded. “Okay then...”  
“I’ll be with you really quickly!” Hyunwoo ran off, letting out a soft chuckle when he was out of earshot and shoving his hand deep into his trouser pocket, where his wallet was quite safe.

Minhyuk walked back to the businessman’s car quietly, feeling a little apathetic. After having such a nice day together, Hyunwoo had suddenly been quite snappy. He hoped this wasn’t a hidden side of the other man--because if it was, it was a side of Hyunwoo that he really didn’t like. Before, the cleaner was certain that his date didn’t have a mean bone in his body but considering the way Hyunwoo had spoken to him he was no longer so sure.  
Reaching the car he unlocked it and sat down in the passenger seat. Having been parked in the sun all day the car was warm inside, so the cleaner left the door open. Leaning his head back against the headrest, he closed his eyes and sighed. Maybe the businessman was just stressed, he considered. Hyunwoo would have wanted the date to go as well as Minhyuk did, so losing his wallet must have put a damper on it for him...

The cleaner’s thoughts were interrupted when something soft pressed against his nose. Opening his eyes he found himself nose to nose with a yellow-eyed tiger.  
This would have been terrifying if the tiger hadn’t been a soft toy. With a small smile, Minhyuk looked to the side to find Hyunwoo standing there, grinning.  
“Present,” the businessman said, pressing the toy into Minhyuk’s hands.  
The cleaner took hold of it and stared up at his date in wonder. This Hyunwoo was completely different to the one he’d seen ten minutes ago. Maybe this was an apology gift. “Thank you...” he said quietly. “Did you find your wallet?”  
“Ah, that’s the thing...” Hyunwoo grinned again, walking around the car and getting into the driver’s seat. “I never lost it.”  
“...you didn’t?” Minhyuk raised an eyebrow.  
“Nope. But I knew I wouldn’t be able to get you that all the time you were with me,” Hyunwoo patted the toy tiger. “I’m sorry for sounding so nasty before. You know I didn’t mean it, right? I was just trying to get a chance to sneak off and buy you a present...” Hyunwoo looked a little sad as he said this, regretting the way he’d spoken to his date.  
Minhyuk smiled softly and reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. “I thought you were mad at me. But it’s okay, now I know the truth.”  
“I’m sorry,” Hyunwoo brought Minhyuk’s hand to his lips and pressed a kiss his slim fingers.  
With a gentle tug, the cleaner brought Hyunwoo closer and kissed him once. “Forgiven.”  
As he said this, Minhyuk hoped he’d never hear the businessman speak so harshly again.

On the drive back to Minhyuk’s apartment, they chatted comfortably about the animals they’d seen that day. Minhyuk’s favourite was still the tiger, whilst Hyunwoo had loved the miniature horse that had nuzzled him like an old friend.  
All too soon they reached Minhyuk’s apartment; thankfully there was a place to park this time around. Hyunwoo was disappointed that they had to part so early - he’d wanted to take Minhyuk to dinner as well - but they both had things to do before the end of the day. Both had groceries to buy; Hyunwoo had some paperwork to look over and Minhyuk had his apartment to tidy and Saya to walk. It was clear that the cleaner felt guilty for leaving his dog on her own overnight, even though she’d been walked and fed before he’d gone out. Saya was a loyal friend to Minhyuk but tended to chew on things - be it shoes or furniture - if left alone too long, so the cleaner needed to keep checks on her and make sure the dog didn’t get bored.  
“I’ll see you tomorrow?” Hyunwoo asked as the slender man started to get out of the car.  
“Sure,” Minhyuk smiled. Over the course of the drive he’d forgotten his earlier worries.  
“Is ten o’ clock alright? You could bring Saya if you want, and we could stop somewhere nice for a walk or something.”  
“That sounds wonderful,” the cleaner nodded, pleased. Due to Hyunwoo’s invitation, he didn’t need to worry about his pet. Leaning over, he pressed his lips to Hyunwoo’s. “Thank you for a lovely day.”  
About to pull back, Minhyuk was stopped when Hyunwoo’s arms wrapped around his shoulders. “It was a pleasure,” Hyunwoo replied, and pulled him in for another kiss.  
Ten minutes later, the pair finally managed to separate, and Minhyuk stood at the kerb to wave his date goodbye, subconsciously hugging the toy tiger to his chest.

 

Grocery shopping seemed incredibly boring compared to the rest of the day. Granted, it wasn’t the most interesting of chores to begin with, but as he wandered around the supermarket Hyunwoo found himself really thinking about how different life was when Minhyuk was around. Minhyuk made even the boring things so much better.  
Hyunwoo remembered for the umpteenth time the occasion when he went to work with the cleaner. It had been hard work and Hyunwoo had done chores he usually hated--but it had been fun. Fun, because Minhyuk had been there.  
The businessman wished that Minhyuk was with him right now. He walked the aisles of the supermarket in a daydream, picking up the items on his shopping list automatically as he passed them. It would be wonderful, he thought, to be able to do this with Minhyuk. For the cleaner and himself to decide upon meals together or just chat and check out the special offers of the week.  
But Hyunwoo knew he was getting far, far ahead of himself. He and Minhyuk weren’t even an item, were they? The businessman wasn’t entirely sure. They had been on two dates, they’d held hands, hugged and made out... But when did all of this become a relationship? Hyunwoo hadn’t felt this serious about anybody before, though he’d certainly been on a lot of dates with some people.  
Minhyuk was different--and this the businessman knew for certain: Minhyuk was different, because Hyunwoo was starting to love him.

 

Across the city, Minhyuk strolled through a park with Saya trotting on ahead. The cleaner felt warm inside as he thought of the day he’d spend with Hyunwoo - not to mention the evening and the night before. Whilst their time together had been spent more or less innocently, his feelings for the businessman were growing. Without even trying, Hyunwoo was drawing Minhyuk in.  
The cleaner heaved a sigh and smiled to himself. He’d make the most of tomorrow.

 

Hyunwoo was so desperate to see Minhyuk again that he reached the cleaner’s apartment block a whole half-hour early. Realising how ahead of schedule he was, he rather sheepishly drove around the block a few times, but within fifteen minutes he couldn’t wait any longer. Just as he pulled up outside Minhyuk’s apartment building, the cleaner walked outside, a bag in his hand and Saya trotting beside him.  
Smiling, Hyunwoo jumped out of the car. “You’re early too, then!”  
Minhyuk chuckled. “I saw you pass by twice and decided I would come down and wait for when you came past next...”  
“Well, I was kind of early,” the businessman said sheepishly, going to the back passenger door and pulling it open. “I put a blanket on the seat for Saya,” he explained, nodding inside the car.  
As if she knew she was going on a car ride, the dog jumped onto the back seat and curled up.  
Hyunwoo looked amazed and Minhyuk grinned at the other’s expression. “Saya loves car rides,” he explained, giving the businessman a peck on the cheek. “Where are we going today?”  
“I thought we’d take a ride out into the country, maybe stop off along the coast...” Hyunwoo suggested, opening the car door for his date.  
“It sounds great. Let’s go.”

 

For the first time in months, Hyunwoo enjoyed driving. Windows rolled down to let fresh countryside air rush in, he sat relaxed in the driver’s seat as he chatted with Minhyuk. They drove a long way from the city, away from the high-rise flats and offices, away from traffic jams and routine.  
In the back seat, Saya sat with her head out of the window, tongue lolling from her mouth happily as the wind whistled through her fur.  
Minhyuk was stretched out comfortably in the passenger seat, watching Hyunwoo as the other man drove. He felt content like this; the two of them together simply enjoying what the world had to offer. It was fantastic to get away from the noise and rush of the city.

Eventually the businessman pulled up in a potholed lay-by close to grassy fields. A sign nearby indicated that there was a footpath leading through them. They’d already agreed on the journey that they’d stop off and take a walk, and eat lunch in the open air.  
Saya ran off across the fields the moment she was let out of the car.  
“Hey wait a moment, Saya!” Minhyuk ran after his pet, wanting to put her on a lead until they were further from the road.  
Chuckling at the two of them, Hyunwoo went around to the boot and pulled out a picnic hamper. He’d spent the best part of the morning preparing lunch for the two of them and hoped Minhyuk would enjoy it.

Sunlit fields stretched out ahead; in the distance Minhyuk could just about make out the sea. If they followed the footpath they’d end up on the coast--which was precisely where they were heading.  
They started off carrying the picnic basket between them since it was a little heavy. But after a while, the cleaner found himself longing to hold Hyunwoo’s hand. It would make the walk utterly perfect.  
At the same moment as Minhyuk hit upon that thought, Hyunwoo heaved a sigh and stopped, putting the hamper down.  
“Something wrong?” the cleaner asked in concern, letting go of his side of the picnic basket.  
Reaching out, Hyunwoo took Minhyuk’s hand and grabbed the hamper with his other hand. “Not anymore.”

When they finally reached the coast, the two men sat on a grassy bank overlooking the sea. Minhyuk poured water into a bowl for Saya whilst Hyunwoo set out their food. It turned out that the businessman had laid quite a spread, but the two hungry walkers managed to eat it all (sneaking the occasional tidbit to the dog).  
Hunger satisfied, Hyunwoo watched the long blades of grass at the edge of the cliff blowing in the wind. He was still bothered by the question of whether he and Minhyuk could be considered partners or not. Normally he wouldn’t be so worried about that kind of thing, but this time it really mattered.  
Minhyuk had noticed that the businessman seemed distracted by something, and as they sat together he wrapped an arm around Hyunwoo’s shoulders, tugging him to lean against his side a little.  
“You’re very quiet,” he said softly. “What’s wrong?”  
Hyunwoo shook his head. “Just thinking...” Now was his chance to talk about what was troubling him, though he wasn’t sure how to approach the matter.  
“Do you want to share those thoughts?” the cleaner asked, lifting a hand to stroke Hyunwoo’s cheek.  
The businessman smiled faintly. “I was thinking about the past few days, and when we went to dinner...”  
“Ah...”  
Hyunwoo rested his hand on the cleaner’s leg, fingers curling slightly around Minhyuk’s thigh. “I suppose I’ve been wondering if all of this means we’re together now...” he explained quietly.  
“Oh,” the slender man’s lips curled into a smile and he hugged Hyunwoo a little closer. “Well yes. I suppose we are, aren’t we.”  
The businessman grinned and wrapped his arms around Minhyuk, resting his head on his new boyfriend’s shoulder. “Yeah.”


	11. 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like not too many people read this because it's way too corny and fluffy so... let's take it up a notch, shall we?

Once the weekend was over, both Hyunwoo and Minhyuk went back to their usual routines (the businessman’s being far more hectic than Minhyuk’s). Unable to see each other regularly, they resorted back to texts and messages in their notebook.

After spending such a great weekend together, Hyunwoo longed for Minhyuk with a passion. He’d been missing the cleaner within minutes of dropping him home on Sunday, which he assumed was normal since they were ‘together’ now. That was how the businessman got through the day: he thought of the fact he was no longer single, and he had a wonderful partner who he could call and see whenever possible--someone special to give everything he’d been aching to give for a long time.  
If it hadn’t been for the new project he was in charge of, Hyunwoo would probably be moping a lot more. Work kept him busy: so busy that at times he was surprised he didn’t meet himself coming the other way. Due to tight deadlines and the sheer volume of work, the businessman was doing a lot of overtime simply to stick to schedule. He was mildly annoyed that more of his co-workers hadn’t been assigned to the project because he could certainly use a few extra pairs of hands. Having been trusted enough to take charge he couldn’t afford to mess up, but when he’d asked his manager for more project staff, the answer had been no. Everyone, his manager had said, was working to full capacity on other projects. Hyunwoo had to make do with the team he had. As a result, he found himself not only doing management-related work, but general project tasks as well. It was a time when he felt he could certainly do with there being two of him, but it was this high level of work that kept his mind off of how much he missed Minhyuk.  
Only when he reached home and found it empty did he start to feel truly alone again. Within days of their last date, Hyunwoo had got into the habit of calling the cleaner in the evening, just to chat.

 

Minhyuk thought it was a pity that by the time Hyunwoo usually got home from work it was too late to meet up. At the end of a working day, both he and the businessman were tired so rushing across the city to meet up wasn’t something either of them could do regularly. What’s more, after finishing work and eating dinner, Minhyuk had Saya to walk. By the time he’d done that, it was often late and normally he simply grabbed a mug of cocoa and went to bed.  
The tight schedules worried Minhyuk. It was true that he had more free time than Hyunwoo - he took a much longer lunch break and on some days finished several hours earlier than others. True, it meant he didn’t get paid as much as a regular ‘nine to five’ employee, but he still made enough to pay the rent and feed his pet and himself. This had worked well enough for a few years, but now he needed to work out how to spend time with his new boyfriend as well.  
The problem, Minhyuk decided, was definitely scheduling--not just his, but Hyunwoo’s too. It was bothering him; much as he cared for the businessman and wanted it to work out between them Minhyuk was becoming scared that they might not see enough of each other. Still, they were only in the first tentative steps of their relationship and the cleaner had to remind himself to remain positive. ‘All will be well!’ he told himself.

Whilst tidying up his apartment and waiting for Hyunwoo to call that evening, the cleaner found a note he’d left for himself: ‘Buy pastries for Hyunwoo’. He chuckled to himself when he found it--Minhyuk had written the note before he and the businessman were together, when he was seriously starting to acknowledge his feelings. Minhyuk set the note on the sideboard where he’d see it the next morning. Tomorrow he was scheduled to clean Hyunwoo’s apartment, so he’d buy pastries before he went there and leave them for the man.

It was almost nine o’clock in the evening, and Minhyuk was starting to worry. He hadn’t heard from Hyunwoo since lunch time. Normally the businessman had been calling at eight - after getting home and eating something. Yet the minutes had ticked by and Minhyuk’s concern grew. He’d sent a text message to his boyfriend but gained no reply. The cleaner had been tempted to call but knew Hyunwoo was working later for his project and didn’t want to interrupt him. Just as he was about to give in and dial the other’s number, the phone rang and Minhyuk snatched it up.  
“Hyunwoo?”  
“Hey Minhyuk.” The businessman sounded tired, but his voice softened as he spoke the cleaner’s name. “Guess I’m a bit late, aren’t I?”  
“Did work keep you long?” Minhyuk asked, curling up on the couch. Saya jumped up beside him and he stroked her silky ears whilst he talked. “I thought you might be busy...”  
“Very busy,” Hyunwoo sighed. “We’re all working so hard, too hard, but they still won’t assign anyone else to the project. Which means tonight I have a heap of paperwork to do before I go to bed, since it needs to be done by tomorrow morning.”  
Minhyuk pouted to himself. This meant their conversation wasn’t going to last very long. “Does it matter so much if you leave it until tomorrow?” he asked gently. “You need to rest at some point...”  
“If it isn’t finished, it delays everything and we’ll miss the deadline. I could really do with an assistant right now,” the other man grumped.  
“I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do?”  
“Wish me luck?” Hyunwoo laughed quietly. “I miss you...”  
“I miss you too,” the cleaner replied warmly. It was nice to get a little confirmation of the businessman’s feelings. “And good luck. I believe in you, Hyunwoo. You can do it. If it gets too much for you then get someone else to do the work, there has to be somebody who can handle it.”  
“Maybe, I suppo-” Hyunwoo was interrupted by a yawn. “Ugh, pardon me. I suppose I could delegate a couple of tasks to others, though we’re all working really hard...” As he thought about it, the businessman realised that if management trusted him, he could certainly follow suit and put his faith in another co-worker on the team--that way it gave them a chance to prove themselves as well. “But how has your day been, Minhyuk?”  
“Not all that bad, really,” the cleaner smiled as Saya nuzzled against him with her wet nose. “It seems the really messy guy is learning to clean up a bit more, it only took two hours to take care of his place today. And no crispy pair of underwear in sight.”  
Hyunwoo chuckled. His cleaner had told him about the crispy clothing before. “That’s great!”  
“Yeah... So, will we see each other soon?” Minhyuk asked hopefully.  
“I was going to suggest that we did,” Hyunwoo laughed light-heartedly. “You must have read my mind! I’m still really busy, but I have a little time on Sunday...”  
“Then can I take it up? I have all of Sunday free so I could help with chores if you want.”  
“Minhyuk, you do enough,” it was obvious from the businessman’s voice that he was smiling. “Let’s meet on Sunday and we’ll decide what to do then?”  
“Sounds great! I look forward to it.”  
“Me too. But I need to get on with this work now, though. Sorry this was such a short call,” Hyunwoo said sadly.  
Minhyuk sighed. “Don’t worry about it Hyunwoo. Go and do your work, but make sure you get enough sleep, won’t you?”  
“Of course. Goodnight, Minhyuk.”  
“Goodnight...”  
Hanging up the phone, the cleaner closed his eyes, resting his head back against the sofa. Hyunwoo was going to work himself into the ground if he wasn’t careful; the more he spoke to the man the more demanding his job sounded. Minhyuk sympathised, wishing he could do something to help.

 

Hyunwoo was getting a little tired of his project. He’d started to call it ‘his’ simply because he’d been left in charge, only now it seemed it was becoming even more his in that he seemed to be doing most of the work! After spending an hour completing a few documents, the businessman decided he’d definitely review the project schedule. He couldn’t change the deadline--not without re-negotiating with the client company first. What he could do was try to reorganise the workloads. Hyunwoo blamed himself for the amount of work he was doing. After all, he’d decided who was going to work on each different section of the project. If he could adjust the work allocation a mere fraction, maybe he’d make it better for everyone.  
Tiredly, the businessman rubbed his eyes. He had two more documents to complete, but he’d told Minhyuk he’d be sure to get enough sleep...  
Deciding the papers could wait until the next day, Hyunwoo crawled to bed, falling asleep within moments of resting his head on the pillow.

That night, Hyunwoo dreamt of falling through a rabbit burrow - just like in the film, ‘Alice in Wonderland’ - with lots of business papers falling down with him. Through them, he’d caught sight of Minhyuk and reached out, but no sooner had their fingers touched did Hyunwoo start to fall faster, and the cleaner was swallowed up by the darkness of the burrow. The businessman fell further: down, down, and down again until he hit the bottom of the hole with a thump--at which point, he woke up, finding it was morning again.  
Heaving a sigh, Hyunwoo dragged himself out of bed to face yet another busy, relatively Minhyuk-less day.

 

As planned, the cleaner bought a box of pastries on his way to Hyunwoo’s apartment. He set them on the kitchen table and left a message in the notebook before he began to clean.  
It was obvious from the state of the apartment that Hyunwoo had left in a rush that morning. Normally the businessman washed up his own breakfast things but today they were left in the sink; the hand towel in the bathroom was shoved rather untidily onto the rail and the pile of post usually on the table by the door had been knocked across the floor, joined there by a jacket that had obviously fallen from the coat hooks. Minhyuk could well picture his boyfriend rushing about in the morning: waking up and realising he’d overslept, hurrying to wash and dress, bolting down breakfast before darting out of the apartment, grabbing hold of a coat with such speed that the momentum knocked another jacket down and sent the businessman’s post flying--all things that Hyunwoo probably wouldn’t have noticed in his haste to get out of the door and catch his train to work. The mental image was rather sweet, even though the businessman was heading to slave away at a desk all day.  
Again, Minhyuk wished he could do something - anything - to make Hyunwoo’s days easier for him.

 

The scent of pastry reached Hyunwoo the moment he stepped into the apartment; he could smell it over the faint whiff of polish and soap. Trudging through to the kitchen, the businessman found a little cardboard box and a new message in the notebook:  
‘Hyunwoo, I intended to bring you some of these several weeks ago, but somehow became distracted. Please relax and enjoy them!’  
Minhyuk’s note made him smile. His boyfriend was so kind-hearted. Hyunwoo wanted to nurture that kind heart and show it the affection it deserved--to show Minhyuk the affection he deserved.  
The businessman hadn’t eaten yet, but he couldn’t sit and eat the pastries alone (no matter how delicious and tempting they looked). First off, he would spoil his dinner. Secondly, he would ruin his diet. Third, he wanted to share them with Minhyuk.  
So when Hyunwoo called his cleaner for their nightly conversation, he insisted his boyfriend came over to eat them with him. Minhyuk had tried to refuse but Hyunwoo had been absolutely adamant about it. Eventually they came to the agreement that they’d enjoy the pastries with coffee when they met on Sunday.

 

It was inevitable that the days seemed to pass slower since they arranged their next meeting. Both men watched the days pass closely, impatient to see each other.  
But finally it was Sunday, and when Minhyuk arrived at Hyunwoo’s door, the businessman greeted him with a bear hug.  
“Minhyuk, it’s so great to see you again, I missed you so much this week!” His words were all in a rush, as though he wanted to cram as much into their few hours together as possible. As it stood, it was still only the morning so they had plenty of time before they parted, but to Hyunwoo, this time was more precious than the rarest jewel.  
Being in the businessman’s arms and seeing him again gave the cleaner a big sense of relief. Suddenly none of the ups and downs of the past week mattered anymore--he was with Hyunwoo, and could forget about everything but his boyfriend.  
“It’s great to see you too,” he murmured into the businessman’s ear, breath tickling the other’s skin.  
Hyunwoo shivered a little and pulled back to kiss the slender man. “Come inside. I’ll make some coffee.”  
It didn’t escape Minhyuk’s notice how tired his partner looked. As Hyunwoo led him into the apartment he caught him around the waist and pushed him towards the couch. “Let me.”  
“Minhyuk, you’re a guest...”  
“And you’re exhausted,” the cleaner replied softly.  
Hyunwoo sighed, hugging his boyfriend and resting his head against Minhyuk’s chest. “That won’t stop me enjoying our time together...”  
“I know. So it won’t hurt if I make the coffee.”  
“Okay...”  
Kissing Hyunwoo’s forehead, Minhyuk pulled back with a smile and headed to the kitchen. It wasn’t until he got there that he found the businessman had followed him.  
“Hyunwoo--!”  
The man smiled. “Someone has to get the pastries~!” he claimed, taking the box out of the fridge.  
Minhyuk chuckled and shook his head. Hyunwoo could be so stubborn--a trait normally seen as negative, yet with the businessman it was adorable.

Seated on the sofa, they dug into the pastries - which proved to be as tasty as they looked.  
After they were finished, Hyunwoo slouched back against the cushions and let out a satisfied groan.  
“That was so good... Thanks, Minhyuk.”  
Minhyuk smiled, linking his fingers with Hyunwoo’s. “It was a pleasure.”  
“You are a pleasure,” stated the businessman, sitting up again and squeezing Minhyuk’s hand. “Everything is better when you’re around...” he leaned in and pecked at the cleaner’s lips. When he drew back, Minhyuk followed him, catching his lips again for a longer kiss and circling his arms around Hyunwoo’s waist.  
Hyunwoo kissed back readily, parting his lips as an invitation to go deeper. With a slight tug, he pulled the shorter man into his lap, tongue snaking into the other’s mouth. The cleaner let out a groan, arms sliding over Hyunwoo’s shoulders and kissing back headily.  
When they broke apart, both were breathing heavily. Smiling at Hyunwoo’s flushed cheeks the cleaner kissed him again, just once.  
“You know what I really feel like doing today?”  
Hyunwoo tilted his head. “What?”  
“Staying in and watching a movie...” Minhyuk smirked slightly. “And kissing you some more.”  
The businessman gave a smile; that suggestion was more than welcome considering what a hectic week he’d had. “That sounds perfect.”

So it was the men spent the rest of the day snuggled together on the sofa and watching movies--though not without a kiss here and there. Blissful, Hyunwoo silently thanked whoever had blessed him with those moments, happy to spend time in relative silence with his partner after being apart so long. Minhyuk was also content; the day gave him and Hyunwoo time together which was much needed.  
Despite trying to appreciate that the businessman was short of spare time, the cleaner hoped it wouldn’t be another week before they saw each other again.

 

Thankfully, due to Hyunwoo’s adjustment of the work allocation and overall project schedule, pressure eased off a little over the next few weeks. Though he was still snowed under with paperwork and meetings, Hyunwoo was able to finish work at the normal time more often, which meant he could fit an extra event into his schedule: something Hyunwoo liked to call ‘Minhyuk time’. Whether they talked on the phone, met up for dinner, or walked Saya together, both tried really hard to see each other as much as possible. It wasn’t much - and they still didn’t see each other enough - but it was an improvement.

“Minhyuk, what did you want to be when you were a kid?”  
Hyunwoo’s question wasn’t too out of the blue - he and Minhyuk had spent part of the evening eating takeaway and watching a film wherein a young teenager was turned into an adult overnight--and what happened as a result.  
The cleaner didn’t need a moment to reply. “I wanted to be an artist,” he replied.  
“What happened?” the businessman asked softly, stroking Minhyuk’s hair.  
“Reality happened,” the slender man chuckled, turning his head slightly to kiss the palm of his partner’s hand. “I couldn’t do it. Much as I loved it I never gained good enough grades; even if I had done, my parents always said that drawing never paid the bills...”  
“That sucks,” Hyunwoo pouted and hugged the other man. “I bet you were good at art.”  
Minhyuk shrugged slightly. “I wasn’t bad at it, but I wasn’t fantastic either.” He kissed his partner’s cheek. “How about you, what did you want to be?”  
“A Gundam pilot,” Hyunwoo chuckled to himself. “Then as I grew up a little, I wanted to be an astronaut. Of course, those were just childish daydreams...”  
“What about when you were a little older?” Minhyuk asked.  
Hyunwoo shook his head. “There was nothing in particular. I suppose I aspired to be like my Dad: a good man, working hard in a nice job.”  
“So you met your dream?”  
“More or less. I reached for it and it wasn’t as great as it seemed,” Hyunwoo said honestly.  
“Life is a little like that sometimes...” Minhyuk nodded. “At least your job has afforded you a cool car and this wonderful apartment.”  
“Suppose so...” the businessman fell silent for a moment, thinking. “If it wasn’t for my job, I might never have met you!”  
“How does that work?” Minhyuk tilted his head, curious. He’d met plenty of people through his own job but couldn’t imagine how Hyunwoo could attribute their meeting to his working in an office.  
“Work keeps me so busy I don’t have time to clean. So when I saw your company’s ad in the paper I decided to get a cleaner...” Hyunwoo kissed Minhyuk’s cheek. “If I hadn’t been in a demanding job, I wouldn’t have needed a cleaner and would never have met you.”  
“Of course. Though I like to believe we were destined to meet,” the slender man replied.  
“If that’s true then fate dealt me a wonderful hand.” Hyunwoo smiled, and Minhyuk melted against him. Everything was so perfect when they were together; it gave him an amazing feeling of happiness and completeness. And the more he thought about it, the more he was sure: he was in love.

 

Minhyuk stood at the sink, daydreaming as he did the little washing-up that needed to be done. He’d noticed that recently, he was a lot slower when he cleaned Hyunwoo’s apartment. It was a simply case of wanting to be there longer--even if it was the middle of the day and the businessman was at work. The apartment emanated the essence of its owner; Minhyuk relished in being able to go in and spend time there (even if he was cleaning). Rinsing a plate, the cleaner recalled the most recent moments he spent with Hyunwoo. Almost a week had passed since then, but the memory was still fresh: they’d both been short on time that day yet succeeded in meeting for a quick chat over muffins in a coffee shop. It had been brief and unlike previous meetings hadn’t been enough. Minhyuk still craved his boyfriend and felt as though he’d go mad if he didn’t see him again soon.  
Heaving a sigh, the cleaner set the plate he’d been rinsing onto the draining board--and let out a shout when he was grabbed from behind.

“Hey, Minhyuk~” Hyunwoo kissed the other’s shoulder as his arms slid fully around him.  
The cleaner frowned. What was Hyunwoo doing home in the middle of the day? “Hyunwoo?”  
“Who else would it be?” the businessman giggled and squeezed him. “This is my apartment after all.”  
“You surprised me,” Minhyuk smiled, leaning back into the embrace.  
“That was the idea. But I waited when I saw you holding that plate; I didn’t want a repeat of last time,” Hyunwoo teased lightly. He’d always remember ‘last time’: the time he and Minhyuk first met.  
The cleaner dried his hands and turned around. “I’ll replace that glass sometime,” he chuckled. He hadn’t expected someone to be in the apartment that first day they met, so when he and Hyunwoo caught sight of each other he’d dropped a glass in shock.  
“Don’t worry about it.” The businessman kissed his partner’s cheek.  
“So why are you here? Don’t you have a deadline to meet?” Minhyuk asked, holding the other closer.  
“I do, but I left rather important documents at home this morning,” Hyunwoo explained sheepishly. “It’s my lunch hour so I hurried back to get them. What a wonderful surprise I had to come in and find you here!”  
“I try my best,” Minhyuk joked and leaned in to nip at the other’s lips.  
“Your best is fantastic,” Hyunwoo replied delightedly, nipping back before capturing the cleaner’s lips in a warm kiss.  
Minhyuk kissed back, heart pounding faster against his chest. Yet again he experienced a sensation of total completeness, and kissed the other a little harder.  
Hyunwoo groaned and pulled back. “Take a break, Minhyuk,” he smiled affectionately and pulled him through to the sofa before kissing him again. “It must be close to your lunch time...”  
Minhyuk planted another soft kiss on the businessman’s lips before replying, “I think I can take a break now...”  
“Good,” Hyunwoo breathed, before tugging him close again. As they kissed he ran his hands up and down his partner’s sides, loving the way the warmth of Minhyuk’s body seeped through the fabric of his t-shirt. Encouraged by the light caresses, the cleaner threaded his fingers through the businessman’s soft hair, parting his lips obediently when Hyunwoo’s tongue brushed against them. Feeling Hyunwoo’s tongue explore his mouth, Minhyuk was unable to hold back a moan. Sliding his hands from Hyunwoo’s hair, he let them run down the businessman’s broad back, fingers finding their way under the other’s shirt. Not breaking the kiss for a moment, Hyunwoo shifted to have him straddle his thighs. A fire raged through him and he kissed his partner all the more intensely, hands caressing the cleaner’s lower back.  
Hyunwoo yanked the other’s hips closer to his own, giving the cleaner’s ass a firm squeeze. Becoming more daring, the shorter man snuck his hands beneath Hyunwoo’s t-shirt, sliding their way over the toned abs and brushing lightly over his nipples, causing the businessman to moan in pleasure. Minhyuk smirked into the kiss, toying with the nubs of hardening flesh and pressing his hips against the other man’s.  
Minhyuk felt his need growing, wanting to feel the businessman even closer, wishing to pin Hyunwoo down on the cushions and make his desire known.  
When they broke apart for a breath, Minhyuk took his chance and shifted their positions, pushing Hyunwoo down on the sofa. The businessman looked up at him with a flushed face, eyes dark with lust. Minhyuk leaned in and kissed him heatedly, half-laying on top of him as he started to undo the businessman’s shirt buttons.  
This time it was Hyunwoo’s turn to groan and he tangled their legs together, kissing back with all the passion he could muster. His mind was fogged over by such an intense sensation, all he could focus on was Minhyuk and how good this felt. He let out a soft mewl of complaint when the cleaner’s lips were removed from his own, but this quickly became a moan of delight when Minhyuk’s mouth became fixed to his neck instead, suckling and licking at places Hyunwoo had never considered so sensitive before. The businessman stroked Minhyuk’s back ecstatically, hands beneath the other’s t-shirt. Slowly, Minhyuk uncovered more of his boyfriend’s torso, finally undoing the last button on Hyunwoo’s shirt and starting to kiss his way down the man’s chest. Hyunwoo let out another groan, shivering beneath Minhyuk and entwining their legs even more tightly. Reaching his partner’s navel, Minhyuk crawled back up the sofa to claim another kiss. Hyunwoo found the way his cleaner moved to be almost predatory--not to mention arousing. As he kissed back, eyes closed, he felt his boyfriend’s hand travel over his body and let out a soft whimper when the cleaner’s soft fingers pinched at one of his nipples. Need growing, he clung to Minhyuk, pulling him closer and growling into the kiss.  
Light-headed from arousal, the cleaner ran his hands further down his partner’s torso, nimbly unbuckling Hyunwoo’s belt and--  
The phone rang.

Hyunwoo growled again - this time more irritated than aroused - and reached blindly for the phone in his pocket as he broke the kiss.  
Minhyuk sighed, disappointed and annoyed that they’d been interrupted by a phone--not to mention that Hyunwoo had actually answered it. He watched as the businessman’s expression changed from being flushed with arousal to anger and on to frustration, and looked hopefully into the other’s eyes when Hyunwoo ended the call.  
“I have to get back to work,” the businessman sighed, expression apologetic. “Sorry Minhyuk...My lunch break is almost over and they need me back at the office to clear up some issues.”  
Untangling their legs, the cleaner sat up rather awkwardly. “I understand.” His reply was soft and sincere, though he secretly damned to hell whoever it was that disturbed them. “It can’t be helped.”  
Hyunwoo sat up, wrapping his arms around Minhyuk’s neck and kissing him gently. “I’m really sorry...” he whispered, playing with the soft strands of hair at the back of the cleaner’s neck. Hyunwoo had been enjoying it as much as Minhyuk had; he wanted so much to just stay there and continue.  
But the moment had been destroyed.  
“It’s alright, Hyunwoo.” Minhyuk murmured. He kissed the bridge of the other’s nose and smiled. “I should get back to work soon, too...”  
Giving his boyfriend a hug, Hyunwoo stood up. “I think I might pay a trip to the bathroom first,” he said sheepishly, cheeks red. His pants had grown rather tight during their making out and he could hardly walk out of the apartment in such a state.  
“Might have to do the same,” the cleaner nodded, adjusting himself awkwardly.  
“Sorry...” the businessman leaned in and gave Minhyuk another quick kiss.  
“I told you, its okay. Don’t let it worry you--or make you late for work,” the cleaner patted his partner’s hand.  
Hyunwoo smiled. “I know you’re just trying to get rid of me,” he joked.  
“Yes, so I can throw a party in your flash apartment,” Minhyuk replied dryly, smiling back.  
Realising he really was running out of time, Hyunwoo gave his cleaner another quick kiss before hurrying off to the bathroom.

Parting after such an unscheduled rendezvous was more than hard. Reluctant and longing, they had kissed goodbye before the businessman rushed back to work.  
The rest of Hyunwoo’s day had no chance of measuring up to his little lunchtime escapade with Minhyuk. Being interrupted had put him in a bad mood, so he ended up snapping at co-workers, getting frustrated with the computer and glaring at the back of the man who called him during his break. He’d been utterly furious when he reached the office to find out the issues he’d been called back to sort out had already been resolved! Today, the businessman was convinced he worked with a bunch of complete imbeciles and - still irate - sat behind his desk grumbling to himself.  
By the end of the day he’d calmed down a bit. Despite being angry it hadn’t taken long for his sense of reason to kick in and he forgave his co-workers for disturbing his and Minhyuk’s make-out session. Instead, Hyunwoo felt disappointed. He and the cleaner had very nearly ventured into new and far more intimate territory. Now he longed to see his partner not only because he loved Minhyuk’s company, but because he wanted to pick up where they were forced to leave off.  
It was a text message from the cleaner that eased Hyunwoo’s sense of sadness. Simply reading, ‘Today was wonderful’, it made the businessman smile. With three words Minhyuk had made it all better. That had to be love, Hyunwoo thought. What else could it be?  
All this put the smile back on the man’s face, and he left work feeling much happier.

 

Sitting at home at the end of the day, Minhyuk thought back to lunchtime. It had been a hot, passionate encounter and he was more disappointed then he let on that it was interrupted.  
However, Minhyuk wasn’t going to let something like a phone call hamper him from acting on his desires. Rather than dwell on it, the cleaner started to scheme.  
His objective was simple: not just to pick up where they left off, but go one better. Minhyuk wanted to give Hyunwoo the most intense night he’d ever experienced--and nothing was going to stop him.


	12. 12

“It’s Saturday.”  
“Yeah...” Hyunwoo rested his elbows on the table, looking across at his boyfriend. Today was one of the few days he was able to eat lunch with Minhyuk, since it was cleaner’s day off.  
“I was thinking we could walk Saya together?” Minhyuk suggested with a smile. “And go back to mine afterwards for a movie?”  
Hyunwoo sat up a little. “I haven’t been to yours before!”  
“That’s because your apartment is much nicer,” Minhyuk smiled. “And your sofa is more comfortable.”  
“I feel bad...” the businessman pouted. He hadn’t intended to never go to his partner’s apartment. On the other hand, Minhyuk had never really invited him. Hyunwoo had caught a few glimpses of the cleaner’s place when picking him up or dropping him off, but that was all.  
“Why?” Minhyuk reached for the other’s hand.  
“I should have visited you sooner.”  
“It isn’t as though you’ve ever had the time,” the cleaner replied soothingly, though he suddenly felt a little petulant. Why should he always be the one to go on a visit? Still, he knew he should have made a point of asking Hyunwoo over sooner because the businessman was hardly the kind of person to invite himself. “Besides, whenever we arrange to do stuff inside it’s always at your apartment, which is far cooler than mine.”  
“I guess...”  
Minhyuk smiled faintly. “Make it up to me by agreeing to stay over,” he suggested silkily.  
“Suppose I’ll have to!” Hyunwoo grinned back and kissed his partner’s hand. He was fast realising that he would do almost anything for Minhyuk. Love did funny things to a person but to the businessman none of that was bad. Since getting together with Minhyuk he’d felt happier; work hadn’t seemed as much of a chore even when it did keep him away from the other man, and seeing the cleaner could improve the whole day. Going to Minhyuk’s apartment would be an adventure, and the cleaner’s tone promised good things.

 

Saturday afternoon went by unusually quickly. Whilst Minhyuk was at home giving his apartment the once-over and readying his bedroom for later, Hyunwoo worked hard in the office.  
It was close to the end of the day when the businessman’s supervisor loomed over his desk.  
“Son, you’ll need to stay later tonight. We’re running behind and need an extra pair of hands to meet a deadline,” the older man said.  
Hyunwoo’s heart sank. How could his supervisor ask this of him at such short notice? Not to mention he’d been practically slaving behind his desk for weeks on end to make sure the project he was trusted with ran smoothly. Hyunwoo frowned as he recalled the fact that when his project was dangerously close to a deadline and he needed more team members, neither the supervisor nor management would reassign anyone, even temporarily. Also, working late would again interfere with his plans with Minhyuk. All of these thoughts swam around in Hyunwoo’s mind, and he trembled in anger.  
As the businessman’s supervisor turned away, Hyunwoo stood up.  
“I can’t work overtime tonight,” he said, surprising himself.  
“What?” the supervisor turned back, glaring slightly. “If you don’t, our project will run behind schedule.”  
“My team and I have our own project to worry about,” Hyunwoo countered in a level voice, though he was fuming inwardly. He’d never spoken up against orders before! “When we were running close to a deadline, I simply adjusted the work allocation and some of the minor points of the schedule. Everything ran much more smoothly without needing a larger team.”  
“You still asked for extra team members,” the supervisor reminded him.  
Hyunwoo nodded. “But I didn’t get them. My team is working hard, and I’ve been taking on just as much work as they have--if not more. I’m sorry but you will have to find someone from another project to do the overtime.”  
The businessman was surprised when the older man nodded. “Very well,” said the supervisor. “Make sure you unwind over the weekend, Son. It wouldn’t do for you to suffer from exhaustion.”  
Hyunwoo watched in disbelief as the other man walked away. Then he sat down rather abruptly. The supervisor, after wanting him to do overtime, had stated that he didn’t want him to become exhausted. What a contradiction! Yet the fact Hyunwoo found even harder to believe was how easily his words had come--how simple it had been to stand up to his senior. He only hoped it wouldn’t land him in any trouble.  
Looking up, he saw a couple of his team members grinning at him. One of them mouthed ‘thanks!’ whilst another gave him the thumbs up. It was obvious they were pleased that he’d saved them from being roped into doing more overtime, too.  
When the work day ended, Hyunwoo and his team left the office, bidding each other a pleasant weekend before going their separate ways.

Hyunwoo fidgeted for the entire train ride to Minhyuk’s apartment. He couldn’t wait to get there; having to endure a ride where the train stopped at every station was almost unbearable and the businessman began to question why he hadn’t driven.  
Finally he reached his destination, and - once Minhyuk had opened the door - he was greeted first and foremost by a happy, bouncy Saya.  
Laughing, Hyunwoo fondled her ears before gently pushing the dog aside so he could get to his partner. Minhyuk said very little, only opened his arms invitingly. The businessman quite gladly stepped into them, slipping his arms around the slender man’s waist and resting his head on Minhyuk’s shoulder.  
“Good day?” the cleaner planted a kiss in Hyunwoo’s hair.  
“Mostly. I stood up to a supervisor...”  
“Good for you!” Minhyuk chuckled.  
“How was your day?” Hyunwoo asked, looking at his boyfriend.  
“Uneventful...” Minhyuk kissed him lightly on the lips. “But won’t you come in?” he smiled and tugged him into the apartment.  
Hyunwoo followed Minhyuk inside, looking around. The man’s apartment was noticeably smaller than his--the businessman reckoned it was probably the same size as his living room! It was a little worn around the edges but Hyunwoo could see the cleaner’s creative touch had transformed what could have been a dingy little flat into a cute, welcoming apartment.  
“This place is lovely!” Hyunwoo exclaimed, looking around some more. “I don’t know why you think mine is better...” From the old stripy sofa to the cluttered shelving unit in the corner of the room, Hyunwoo simply loved what he saw. It had character. Of course, the best part of the apartment was Minhyuk.  
The businessman linked hands with his partner and kissed him. “Shall we walk Saya, then?”  
“Sure,” Minhyuk smiled, stealing another kiss before pulling away to put on his jacket.  
Sensing she was going out, Saya padded up to the front door and sat down, tail wagging against the skirting board.  
Once the cleaner was ready, he and Hyunwoo left the apartment with the dog, heading towards the park.  
Halfway there, Hyunwoo linked his fingers with Minhyuk’s. “Can we do something on Sunday, too?” he asked hopefully. “I have a little paperwork to get done, but it shouldn’t take long...”  
“I was banking on that,” the slender man smiled and squeezed Hyunwoo’s hand. “What would you like to do?”  
The businessman leaned in and kissed Minhyuk’s cheek, admiring how perfect he looked in the moonlight--not that he didn’t look perfect in any light. “Anything, as long as I am with you.”  
“Really?” Warm inside, the cleaner smiled. “Even laundry and grocery shopping?” he asked playfully as they reached the park gates. Saya started straining on the lead when she recognised the place, so Minhyuk bent down and unclipped it from her collar. With a yip of happiness, the dog bounded into the park.  
“Anything,” Hyunwoo confirmed, watching the dog leap around in a pile of leaves. He stepped closer to his boyfriend as they started to walk through the park, arm moving around Minhyuk’s waist. “Even doing laundry...” he rested his head on the cleaner’s shoulder.  
“That desperate to see my boxers?” Minhyuk couldn’t help but tease his boyfriend, and wrapped his arm around the other’s shoulders.  
Hyunwoo frowned and prodded him in the side. “No...” he smirked. “Well, maybe. I just want to spend more time with you because I love you.” The words rolled off of his tongue without Hyunwoo even thinking about them. Realising how serious his words were - and noticing that the cleaner had fallen silent - he faltered. “I... I mean-” he was silenced by a finger to his lips.  
Hyunwoo’s words had made Minhyuk weak at the knees. To hear those words spoken, and spoken by Hyunwoo... He never imagined it would make him feel so warm and contented--so loved.  
Hesitantly, Hyunwoo lifted his head, not really knowing what to expect but then finding Minhyuk’s eyes full of affection.  
Unsure of what to say in response, Minhyuk let his actions guide him. Turning Hyunwoo to face him, he didn’t give him a moment to say anything more--he simply leaned in and kissed him softly.

 

“Dinner will be ready soon,” Minhyuk called out from the kitchen area.  
Hyunwoo nodded distractedly. “Okay...”  
He’d been thoughtful ever since the walk in the park. It was a bit of an accident to have told Minhyuk that he loved him--it was true, but the businessman wondered if he shouldn’t have said it. Maybe Minhyuk didn’t feel the same way, in which case he hoped his boyfriend wouldn’t start to feel awkward around him. When they returned from walking Saya, the cleaner had gone straight into the kitchen, telling Hyunwoo to make himself at home and feel free to read a magazine or watch TV.  
The kisses Minhyuk had given him in the park should have been enough of a reassurance that everything was fine, but the fact the other man didn’t say anything back was a concern.

Minhyuk was still pleasantly shaken after hearing the businessman’s proclamation of love. He had no complaints about it--his only problem is he didn’t trust himself to reply. Whilst he was certain he loved the other man, Minhyuk worried that if he began to tell Hyunwoo how much he meant to him, he’d never be able to stop. All that would sound a little intense and he didn’t want to scare Hyunwoo away! Recently the cleaner’s feelings had been so strong he wondered if the word ‘love’ could cut it.

 

Getting up from the couch, Hyunwoo went to grab a magazine from the table in the corner of the room. As he flipped through the selection, a drawing caught his eye. Pulling back the magazines he discovered a notepad, covered in Minhyuk’s writing--and numerous doodles of what the businessman realised were him.  
Of course, Hyunwoo didn’t go leaping about in a flurry of hearts and flowers, but the little cartoons were cute.  
“Hey...” he carried the notepad into the kitchen. “What’s this then?”  
Minhyuk blushed when he saw what Hyunwoo was holding. “Nothing. Just some doodles from when I was on the phone...”  
“Order flowers - Kim Florist, collect midday. Pick up Hyunwoo...” the businessman read the cleaner’s notes, smiling. “This was from our first date, wasn’t it?”  
“Yeah...” the cleaner admitted, trying to take the notepad away.  
“These drawings are so cute!” Hyunwoo grinned and held the pad behind his back. “But you need to draw yourself there too! Doodle-me will be lonely...”  
“I can’t draw myself,” Minhyuk pouted, wrapping his arms around his partner in order to grab his notepad.  
“Aw. I’d draw you but I have trouble even with stick figures,” the businessman joked and kissed Minhyuk.  
For a moment Minhyuk forgot about reclaiming the notepad and tugged Hyunwoo closer, kissing back. “I’ll take your heart instead of your stick figures,” he said softly when they parted.  
Hyunwoo smiled, watching his partner turn back to the counter and start to dish food onto the plates. “You already have it, Minhyuk...” he murmured.  
The cleaner simply looked over and smiled.

Dinner was a relatively relaxed affair, eaten on the sofa in front of the TV. They’d elected to watch a comedy film--which proved to be a bad decision since needing to laugh whilst having a mouth full of food can end up rather messy! Still, Hyunwoo enjoyed himself. Despite having watched DVDs and eaten with Minhyuk countless times in his own apartment, it felt different at the cleaner’s place: more cosy and intimate.  
By the time the film reached its hilarious yet good-natured conclusion, they’d finished eating and were in a tangle of limbs on the sofa.  
Lounging on top of his boyfriend, Hyunwoo leaned in to steal a kiss. “Good movie...”  
“Yeah,” Minhyuk smiled, stroking the other’s back. The cleaner would swear he was addicted to the feeling of Hyunwoo pressed against him. He loved the man’s softness and warmth; being so close to him meant he was surrounded by the businessman’s scent and Minhyuk felt more strongly towards him than ever.  
“Mm...” Hyunwoo nuzzled against the cleaner’s chest, comfortable and becoming lulled into a doze by the gentle caresses to his back. “That’s nice...”  
“Good,” Minhyuk smiled. “You feel so lovely and warm...” He slipped his hands beneath the other man’s shirt, running them sensually up and down the soft flesh of Hyunwoo’s broad back.  
Hyunwoo shivered a little, licking his lips. It only took a tiny movement of his head for him to press his mouth against Minhyuk’s neck and suckle on the soft skin--one tiny movement which caused the cleaner to groan in delight.  
The businessman smiled against his partner’s neck, shifting a little on top of him to lick and nip at the cleaner’s adam’s apple, which made him emit another soft moan. Hands finding their way to Minhyuk’s sides, Hyunwoo snuck them beneath the man’s shirt, bunching it up to caress the skin he found underneath. As with the time in his own apartment, the businessman suddenly felt a passionate fire burning within, urging him to go on, mind and heart demanding he peel off the cleaner’s clothes and get closer.  
“Hyunwoo...” Minhyuk slid his hands down over the other’s bum, heart thumping and words tentative yet huskily spoken. “Want to take an early night?”  
“Yes.” The reply came quickly and with a slight tone of desperation, causing Minhyuk to smile: his boyfriend wanted this as much as he did himself. Pushing Hyunwoo back gently, the cleaner got up from the sofa and lead him to the bedroom. On the way there he purposefully knocked the phone off the hook.  
“Hyunwoo?”  
“Yes?” the businessman looked at Minhyuk affectionately as the other closed the bedroom door.  
“Please turn off your phone,” Minhyuk gave a slight grin as he said this, and Hyunwoo laughed.  
“I turned it off the moment I reached your apartment building,” he explained with a smile.  
“Wonderful,” Minhyuk sat on the bed. “Nobody will disturb us tonight.”  
Smiling, Hyunwoo nodded, eyes travelling around the bedroom. The bed looked freshly made, with a soft-looking throw at the end and even softer white sheets. The curtains had already been drawn and two bedside lamps threw a gentle glow around the room. Minhyuk had planned for this. Hyunwoo’s heart suddenly leapt into his mouth as his eyes returned to his partner sitting on the bed. The cleaner smiled gently and held out a hand.  
Tonight, Hyunwoo realised, would change their relationship forever. They would cross another boundary--and maybe become closer, maybe grow apart. Hyunwoo prayed that it was the former. His inner fire forbade him from doing anything but step towards the bed, take Minhyuk’s warm hand in his own and push him down upon the sheets.

There was no rush or fight for dominance. The moment Minhyuk felt himself guided back onto the bed it was clear how the night would play out.  
Clothes were gently discarded; Hyunwoo found he loved to slowly uncover more of the cleaner’s pale, smooth skin. He placed kisses everywhere he could, hands roaming the newly-discovered contours of Minhyuk’s body in adoration. In turn, Minhyuk unbuttoned Hyunwoo’s shirt, carefully as if he were unwrapping something precious. He ran his fingers over the other’s chest, making him moan as he brushed over his partner’s nipples. For a tentative moment Minhyuk found himself tempted to switch their positions and pin Hyunwoo beneath him--but he realised he didn’t want that. Hyunwoo was above him; the look in the businessman’s eyes made Minhyuk feel utterly helpless and he loved it.  
As the last item of clothing was cast aside, Hyunwoo lowered his body onto the cleaner’s, soaking up his warmth. Their lips met in a tender kiss, each of them groaning into the other’s mouth as their arousals rubbed together, sending shockwaves of pleasure through their bodies. As they kissed, Minhyuk placed his hands on the other’s ass again, drawing their hips even closer.  
Pulling back for air, Hyunwoo let out a moan. “Minhyuk...” he uttered.  
The cleaner placed a finger to the other’s lips, smiling up at him fondly, silently asking him to go on.  
“What about...?” Hyunwoo began. He hadn’t thought to bring protection, yet didn’t know how to mention it without detracting from the romantic atmosphere that had built up around them.  
Without a word, Minhyuk brought out the necessary items from the drawer beside his bed. “Don’t hold back,” he urged. “I want to feel you...” He couldn’t wait to take the other inside of him, wanted their bodies to meet in the closest way physically possible.  
The businessman gave his partner a slow kiss, hands trailing down Minhyuk’s sides and over his hips, caressing his thighs. His movements were languid and gentle; even if Minhyuk hadn’t returned his words in the park, Hyunwoo wanted to pour all of his love into this act. All the time he prepared Minhyuk, the man let out soft groans of pleasure--which in turn made the businessman’s own desire grow.  
Minhyuk whimpered when - at last - Hyunwoo guided himself in, grasping the sheets beneath him. Within moments he was moaning, begging Hyunwoo to continue, to go faster, harder, deeper.  
Eyes never leaving the cleaner’s, Hyunwoo complied with Minhyuk’s each and every request, his body trembling in pleasure as he thrust.  
“Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk exhaled ecstatically. Never had his past experiences in the bedroom been so intense; as he neared his climax he felt as though his heart might burst from the emotions that swept through him, whiting out every thought. “God, Hyunwoo, I love you!” he moaned out, arching his back beneath the other man as he climaxed.  
Hyunwoo gasped, eyes widening at his lover’s moaned words. “I... Minhyuk--!” His words were cut off by a moan as he reached his orgasm, shivers running down his spine.  
Panting, Hyunwoo disengaged himself from his cleaner, only to lay beside him a moment later, head upon Minhyuk’s chest. Minhyuk wrapped his arms around his partner and heaved a quiet, satisfied sigh.  
“Is it true?” Hyunwoo asked quietly, almost afraid to hear that the cleaner only said those longed-for words in the heat of the moment.  
Minhyuk smiled gently. Perhaps he’d struggled with his words for too long. “It’s true,” he murmured, dropping a kiss on the top of his lover’s head. “I love you.”  
Hyunwoo’s shoulders shook a couple of times and for a few seconds the cleaner was struck by the fear that his partner was crying. But when he looked at the businessman’s face, he found him to be smiling.  
“You won’t believe how happy I am,” he chuckled silently and reached up to caress Minhyuk’s cheek. “I love you too.”  
“I know,” the cleaner nuzzled Hyunwoo’s hand.  
The businessman smiled lazily. “I guess we should go and shower...”  
“Let’s stay here a while,” Minhyuk replied. Bathed in the warmth of the other’s body and the afterglow of their lovemaking, his greatest desire now was to just lay there with him.  
Hyunwoo didn’t need any persuading, simply nodded against Minhyuk’s chest and hugged him a little. Nothing could compare to how he felt at that moment: happy, secure, and loved.  
Who knew what tomorrow would bring.


	13. 13

Minhyuk paced up and down outside the mall. He and Hyunwoo had arranged to go shopping but now the businessman was over half an hour late and whenever the cleaner tried to call his lover the phone had been engaged.  
This troubled him: they’d organised this little shopping trip over a week ago now and he hoped Hyunwoo hadn’t forgotten. A rogue negative thought struck him: what if Hyunwoo was no longer interested?  
The lovers had only spoken on the phone and via the notebook lately--since the time they first slept together. Today was the first day they were able to see each other. For the past few days, Hyunwoo hadn’t been able to do anything since he’d had a deadline to meet.  
Self-doubt was seeping into the cleaner’s mind. He started to worry that his partner thought he was bad in bed and was feeling awkward about their night together. Maybe Hyunwoo didn’t think they were sexually compatible but didn’t know how to talk about it? There had been several times in the past when Minhyuk could tell his boyfriend wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.  
Yet the cleaner knew he was good in bed.  
Minhyuk heaved a sigh and sat down on one of the benches near the mall. Pulling out his phone, he decided to try and call his lover again. If he didn’t get through to Hyunwoo this time, he was going home. Already feeling depressed, Minhyuk hit the speed dial and held the phone to his ear.  
“I’m sorry, but the number you dialled is unable to take your call at present. Please leave a message after the tone.” The polite female voice on Hyunwoo’s answering machine made Minhyuk’s heart dive-bomb. It seemed that Hyunwoo really had stood him up.  
As a final attempt - and not wanting to believe the other had forgotten him - the slender man tried to call Hyunwoo’s mobile phone, only to be redirected to voicemail. Minhyuk hung up without leaving a message, then stood up from the bench and walked away.  
Rounding the corner, he collided with someone who was running at a fast pace. Instinctively he grabbed hold of the person to steady himself, but it wasn’t enough to stop them falling to the ground.  
“What’s your problem? Jerk!” the running man jumped to his feet, glaring down at Minhyuk. “Why don’t you just keep out of people’s way?”  
The cleaner was too stunned to say anything. The man had run into him, not the other way around. But before he could speak up, the runner had gone. Sitting up, Minhyuk found himself drawing his knees to his chest, pressing himself close to the wall and breathing heavily. Was nothing going to go right today? After looking forward to seeing Hyunwoo all week, the businessman had stood him up; someone had knocked him over (which had hurt) and then blamed him for it, his clothes were now covered in dust and muck from the ground... What was next? The cleaner hoped he wasn’t going to get home to find Saya had been chewing on things again.  
Minhyuk knew he was obstructing part of the pavement and probably looked a pitiful sight, but nobody stopped to ask if he was okay or even to tell him to move. Nobody cared; they were all too busy going about their own lives and simply walked around him as though he was an inanimate object.  
He closed his eyes to fight the stinging sensation within them. ‘Come on, Minhyuk, chin up,’ he mentally told himself. He hadn’t cried since he was a child and didn’t want to start doing so again. Even though his bum and back hurt from being thrown to the ground, and his heart ached because Hyunwoo hadn’t come to meet him, Minhyuk still didn’t want to cry. It would look so weak--as weak as he felt.  
“...Minhyuk?” A hand rested on the cleaner’s shoulder and he sensed someone crouch down beside him. “Are you alright? What happened...?”  
The slender man slowly opened his eyes and looked up to see Hyunwoo. “You’re here...” he said in disbelief.  
Cringing, the businessman moved a little closer to his partner. “Yeah, I’m sorry I’m so late. The office called with an emergency as I was leaving and I ended up having to speak to one of our clients. I’m sorry, Minhyuk. I would have told them to wait but if we lost the contract I could probably lose my job too, since the project is my responsibility.”  
“I tried to call you...” the cleaner said quietly. “When your phone wasn’t engaged I got the answer machine, and your mobile went straight to voice mail.”  
“It did?” Hyunwoo looked confused and pulled the phone from his pocket. “Eh? It’s switched off...” Feeling stupid, the businessman looked to his lover apologetically. “I’m sorry, Minhyuk. Let me buy you coffee to apologise? I feel really bad about this.”  
“I thought you stood me up...”  
Hyunwoo frowned and wrapped his arms around the other man. “Never! But I am going to make you stand up before we get trodden on.” Still hugging Minhyuk a little, the businessman tugged him to his feet. “You’re all dusty...”  
“Somebody ran into me and knocked me over,” the cleaner explained. “Then he blamed me for it.”  
Frowning even deeper, Hyunwoo hugged his partner tightly. “What an ass! Poor Minhyuk... We’ll get some retail therapy and make you feel all better, alright?”  
Minhyuk smiled faintly and hugged back, his mood beginning to lighten. “Alright.”

“Wow check out those trousers!” Hyunwoo gently pulled his lover to a halt outside a shop window. The mannequin on the other side of the glass wore a pair of black, shiny leather trousers along with a long knit cardigan.  
“Are you going to try them on?” Minhyuk asked, raising an eyebrow.  
“No!” Hyunwoo laughed and squeezed the other man’s hand. “You are.”  
“What?” the cleaner gave his partner an incredulous look. Had Hyunwoo gone mad?  
The businessman smiled at him imploringly. “Come on Minhyuk, they’ll look gorgeous on your lovely long, slim legs...”  
Minhyuk didn’t really have a chance to protest, because Hyunwoo was already pulling him through the doors of the shop. Before he knew it, he was being ushered into the changing room with a pair of leather trousers in his hands.  
Slipping them on, Minhyuk was surprised at how soft they were. The cleaner turned around in front of the changing room mirror to get a better idea of the fit. They really did look good on him, as Hyunwoo said they would, and he was surprised to find that he like the way the shine of the leather looked on his thighs.  
“Have you got them on yet?” Hyunwoo called through the changing room door. “I want to see, Minhyuk!”  
Chuckling, the cleaner pulled open the door and stepped outside. “What do you think?”  
Hyunwoo’s jaw almost hit the floor. He knew his partner would look good in the trousers but Minhyuk had gone beyond good and into the realm of damn sexy--even if the man’s hoodie didn’t exactly coordinate with the trousers. “You need them,” he stated.  
Minhyuk laughed again. “I don’t have anything to go with them...”  
“A knitted sweater,” Hyunwoo replied automatically, eyes on the cleaner’s crotch.  
Minhyuk pouted. “Not to one in the window, I hope.”  
Eyes darting up to his lover’s face, the businessman shook his head and grinned. “Hell no, that one is revolting. You want a finer knit with a wide neckline.”  
“Why is that?”  
“Shows off your sexy collarbones,” Hyunwoo replied with a smile, stepping closer. “Of course, you could wear nothing at all...” he purred in a soft voice.  
Minhyuk felt his knees weakening again. Hyunwoo had changed a little since they first met--generally he was still the cute, slightly scatterbrained and easily flustered man he’d always known, but when it came to the two of them, the businessman had definitely become more forward. The cleaner liked it.  
“I suppose I could buy these...” he murmured, running his fingers across the leather. “For when we meet.”  
“Oh yes, you definitely should,” Hyunwoo smirked. “I’ll find you something to go with it!”  
A few minutes later, they were leaving the shop, Minhyuk carrying a shopping bag containing clothes he’d never dreamed of buying before. But they had suited him. The cleaner decided that he should have started shopping with Hyunwoo sooner.

After shopping, they went back to Hyunwoo’s apartment and the businessman made his lover model all of his new purchases. Minhyuk was a little worried at how much he’d managed to spend--he’d bought more than one new outfit and new boots, too, which was hardly healthy for his bank balance. Since his partner seemed to like the leather trousers the most, Minhyuk purposefully left them until last in his little fashion show. Each time he stepped into the living room Hyunwoo had looked hopefully at him; the cleaner found it amusing to see his lover fight the urge to pout when he saw the lack of leather in his ensemble.  
Inevitably he wore the shiny leather trousers, along with a slightly feminine sweater that Hyunwoo had picked out for him. From the look his lover gave him when he walked into the living room wearing them, Minhyuk knew Hyunwoo wanted to eat him--figuratively.  
“Those were your best purchase today...” the businessman stated, practically drooling. Minhyuk looked so effortlessly sexy, with his hair slightly dishevelled from where he’d been changing so much. Hyunwoo was starting to feel aroused just looking at him!  
Needless to say, it wasn’t all that long before his eager hands were playing at Minhyuk’s waistband and the trousers were soon discarded to the floor.

 

Hyunwoo had been worried when he found his lover curled up on the ground outside the mall. The cleaner had looked thoroughly upset, though had perked up as they shopped. Once they got to the bedroom, Minhyuk had seemed far from sad or depressed. In fact, it had been the blond that had taken the lead, and Hyunwoo had quite willingly let his partner shove him down onto the bed and take him passionately. For the businessman, it had been fantastic. He assumed Minhyuk had enjoyed it too--judging by the intoxicated moans the other had let out during their love-making. Though that happened two weeks ago now, the businessman couldn’t help but keep thinking back to it. He and Minhyuk had met up twice more since then but neither time had the cleaner worn those gorgeous leather trousers--though both times they’d ended up having sex. Not that Hyunwoo could complain: Minhyuk was nothing short of glorious between the sheets. He just missed seeing his partner’s attractive legs clad in the shiny black material.  
The businessman sighed to himself, trying to concentrate on the documents he had to sign off as satisfactory. Thanks to scheduling and a board meeting, he wouldn’t be getting any Minhyuk Time for a good week or so--if not longer, considering how long it was taking for some of the work to get done. At present there was nothing Hyunwoo could do about it - the papers they were waiting for were from an outside source, so there were no team members he could encourage to work harder. As it stood, the team was working hard anyway; rather than stop working altogether in wait for the papers, they’d begun working on unrelated tasks still related to the project. In short, they were doing what they could do without the important papers.

 

Cleaning happened automatically for Minhyuk. He went around houses and apartments in a daze, wiping down work surfaces here and dusting there, running the vacuum around--he’d done it all so often that he didn’t need to think about it.  
Instead his thoughts focused on Hyunwoo. Whenever he thought of his lovers his heart jumped, though recently it had been aching a bit, too. Having to wait for weeks just to see each other had been fine when they were friends, but now they were partners it simply didn’t seem right that they barely saw each other. In three weeks they’d met three times, and only once - the shopping day - had they been able to spend more than a few hours together. Minhyuk always knew that Hyunwoo did a lot of overtime but lately it seemed as though he was doing even more. The businessman was always in the office, or rushing off to a board meeting, or having a brain-storming session with his team.  
The cleaner was jealous. Hyunwoo always seemed to choose work over him. Granted, his lover had to work sometimes but Minhyuk couldn’t imagine why the businessman couldn’t go home at the normal time more often, or go home early every now and again so they could actually spend quality time together--and by that, Minhyuk wasn’t thinking of sex. The slender man missed his lover more than he ever imagined possible; all he could wish for was to spend a day in Hyunwoo’s company, doing something fun and (mostly) innocent like they used to in the past, before they started sleeping together and before they agreed they were an item. It seemed waiting to spend time with Hyunwoo hadn’t been so hard back then.  
Minhyuk sighed to himself as he rinsed his client’s dishes. He’d become utterly useless without Hyunwoo, almost dependent on the other man’s company. He felt it criminal that after falling in love and being able to admit it, he didn’t see the object of his desires.  
The cleaner growled to himself, trying to shrug off his miserable mood. If Hyunwoo wasn’t going to make time for him, maybe he’d have to be more pushy. Minhyuk knew that things didn’t just happen; if he wanted something he’d have to work for it--which meant he would start pressing Hyunwoo for more visits. His boyfriend would just have to cope with meeting him for lunch more often. Even the busiest of businessmen needed to stop and refuel following a hard morning of work, after all!  
Filled with a new sense of determination, Minhyuk felt a little better and continued his cleaning.

 

“Hey, Minhyuk!” Hyunwoo hugged his boyfriend cheerfully as they met and followed the hug with a soft kiss, momentarily forgetting that they were in the middle of the street. “I’ve been going mad at work missing you and then we were held up over the weekend because the guy doing some stuff for us outside of the office got into an accident and his work was locked away in his apartment, so we didn’t get it until two days ago and--”  
Minhyuk put a finger to his lover’s lips, making him fall silent. “No more talk about work!” he ordered gently, giving his boyfriend a loving smile. “You’re all flustered and cute as it is, you’re going to get an ulcer if you don’t calm down.”  
“Sorry,” Hyunwoo smiled sheepishly and hugged his partner again. “How has your week been?”  
“The usual,” Minhyuk replied, patting the businessman’s back before they started to walk along the street.  
“That fun, huh?” Hyunwoo tilted his head.  
The cleaner nodded. “Well, I’ve been doing some thinking...”  
Suddenly struck with fear, Hyunwoo’s eyes widened. “Thinking? About what?” Inwardly he prayed that his boyfriend wasn’t going to break up with him. He knew they weren’t spending much time together, but he couldn’t help it. If he didn’t do his job, he would get the sack, which would put a huge black mark on his employment record and make it very difficult to get another job elsewhere. Or maybe Minhyuk had simply decided he didn’t like him. Perhaps the tall, slender, gorgeous cleaner had met someone else--someone much more attractive and eloquent than Hyunwoo felt he was.  
“Us...”  
The businessman cringed, steeling himself for the painful blow to his heart. “Yes?”  
“We need to spend more time together, Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk said at length. It was hard to bring the subject up; he didn’t want the businessman to feel he was being critical, yet at the same time he wanted his partner to realise he wasn’t happy with things as they were.  
Hyunwoo let out a sigh of relief. “I know...” he replied, hugging Minhyuk’s arm. “I keep trying to clear my schedule, but then work gets in the way. I’ve not even been stopping for a proper lunch lately. I’ve just been eating some fruit at my desk.”  
The cleaner pouted a little. “Hyunwoo, it sounds like you’re getting overworked. Can’t you take a break?”  
“No. Our next deadline is coming up in a few weeks and we’re already facing delays. My next scheduled holiday time isn’t for months...”  
Minhyuk pouted even more. Months. How was he supposed to go on like this for months?  
“I wish I could clear some more free time,” Hyunwoo said softly. “I miss you so much. It isn’t enough to just see each other for a few hours every week. If I could get my groceries and post sorted out in the week I would...”  
“Don’t get exhausted,” Minhyuk dropped a kiss on his lover’s temple. Trying to see each other some more appeared to be futile. “What if you stayed over now and again? More than just once a week?” he suggested.  
Hyunwoo sighed. “I suppose I could...”  
“Don’t do it if you don’t really want to,” replied the cleaner, slightly hurt at the other man’s reluctance.  
“No, I want to,” Hyunwoo sighed. “It’s just your place is quite far to go after work, especially if I’ve been working late. I’m going to get paid so much overtime this month; I’ve practically worked an extra week already.”  
“You really need to slow down,” the cleaner tugged his boyfriend closer. First and foremost, he worried for his lover’s health--even more than he did about the amount of time they spent together. “Before you fall down.”  
“I don’t have time to,” Hyunwoo rested his head on Minhyuk’s shoulder, closing his eyes for a few seconds as they walked. “You know this is the first chance I’ve had in ages to leave the office and get lunch?”  
“Well then, it’s my treat today,” the cleaner smiled sympathetically.  
“No, you are my treat,” Hyunwoo opened his eyes again and looked at his boyfriend cheekily. “My yummy Minhyuk. Who I shall enjoy eating lunch with today!”  
Minhyuk chuckled and ruffled his lover’s hair as they reached the cafe. “I’m still paying. You deserve it after all your hard work.”  
Hyunwoo lips turned down. “Alright, but I’m paying next time.”  
Minhyuk nearly replied, ‘Whenever next time is,’ but thought better of it. He didn’t want to start an argument with his partner, merely wanted to see him more often. Yet the moment they entered the cafe they both became distracted; it was only once he and Hyunwoo had parted again that Minhyuk realised they still hadn’t resolved the issue.

 

Hyunwoo thought long and hard about his conversation with Minhyuk. How could he get more time with his partner? It didn’t matter how much he went over his diary and schedule, he still seemed to be severely lacking in time even to himself, let alone with his boyfriend. Sunday remained the only day of the week he had mostly free--his only chores being to do the grocery shopping and look over whatever post he hadn’t had time to read during the week. Thankfully it only took an hour or so, which was how he’d managed to see his partner over the past few weeks. Once his groceries were done he’d taken to going to the cleaner’s apartment and accompanying him on a walk with Saya before they stopped for lunch. Then there was usually some sex, followed by dinner - normally ordered in, since neither of them ever felt like cooking after making love.  
Eventually Hyunwoo decided the only way around their problem of not having enough time together would be to take Minhyuk up on his offer of a bed for the night. It only gave them a little extra time, but he hoped that extra time would prove to be enough for them both until his workload eased off a bit.

“Hello Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk breathed into the phone, relaxing back in his bath. He didn’t make a habit of taking the phone in with him, but expected his partner to call him sometime during the evening and hadn’t wanted to miss the call.  
“Hey...” the businessman blinked at the sound of the other’s voice. “Are you okay?”  
“Fine,” the cleaner replied. “Just taking a bath.”  
Hyunwoo smiled. “Sounds wonderful. So, I was thinking about what you said the other day, and looking over my schedule...”  
“Oh yes?” Minhyuk sat up a little in the water.  
“I still can’t find much more time at the moment, I’m sorry,” Hyunwoo said quickly. “But if I could stay at your place now and then it would be great!”  
“Really?” the cleaner was slightly disappointed; before his boyfriend’s call he’d been daydreaming that the businessman would suddenly find he had hours upon hours of free time. Still, a few more hours were better than nothing at all.  
“Yeah. I couldn’t do it every week because at the moment I’m working overtime even on Saturdays, so I’d only get there in time to sleep,” Hyunwoo replied. “But next Saturday I should be able to finish at the usual time! Even though it’s close to the next big deadline we’re making pretty good progress. I could then be at yours within the hour, if that’s okay? I mean, I wish it could be this Saturday but I’ve got to go to a review with my superiors,” Hyunwoo’s displeasure at this was evident in his voice. “And of course, they scheduled it after work hours in light of this damn project we’re doing.”  
“Hey, calm down,” Minhyuk responded soothingly. It was clear his partner was getting agitated. “Next Saturday will be wonderful. I’ll order some dinner for us and we’ll spend a nice evening together.”  
“And Sunday morning...? I can always do my groceries in the afternoon,” Hyunwoo said hopefully.  
“Whatever you desire,” Minhyuk’s voice softened. “I love you, Hyunwoo. I wish you were here...”  
Hyunwoo let out a quiet sigh. “If I wasn’t chained to my desk right now I’d be over there and in that bath with you,” he replied, voice lowered.  
“Chained to your desk?” The cleaner raised an eyebrow. It was eight in the evening, long since Hyunwoo ought to be home!  
“Well, there’s a deadline to meet, and that review in a few days time...” the man suppressed a yawn, sitting back in his office chair and peering moodily at the pile of papers in his in tray.  
“Hyunwoo, go home and get something to eat,” Minhyuk said sharply. He couldn’t believe how overly hard his partner was working; it was no wonder Hyunwoo always looked so exhausted!  
“But I only have a few more document-”  
“Hyunwoo, if you’re ill from overwork you’ll miss all your deadlines and your project will be a failure. Now go home and get some rest.”  
The businessman sighed. “Alright. See you Sunday?”  
Minhyuk groaned. “Sunday... Hyunwoo--it’s my aunt’s birthday. Didn’t I tell you? I’m leaving to visit her on Sunday and returning Monday. She’s the only relative who’s ever been nice to me so I feel I owe her.”  
“Okay...Well...bye for now, Minhyuk. Wish your aunt a happy birthday for me.”  
“I’m sorry. I thought I’d told you.”  
“You didn’t. But never mind, I’ll use Sunday to sleep!” Hyunwoo joked light-heartedly, trying to mask his disappointment. “I’ll see you next Saturday, then,” he said. “Love you.”  
“Love you too. Missing you already.”  
“You too. Bye...”

Hyunwoo left the office with a heavy heart. Seeing Minhyuk for a few hours on Sunday was the only thing he had to look forward to; the times he wasn’t able to do so felt so empty. Though he joked about it, the businessman really was tempted to spend all of Sunday sleeping. He felt so tired, almost too tired to bother eating before he fell into bed. For the umpteenth time in his career, takeaway saved the day (and Hyunwoo’s grumbling stomach): the businessman trawled home eating a warm cup of ramen.

 

Minhyuk felt guilty. He couldn’t believe that he’d forgotten to tell Hyunwoo he wouldn’t be there on Sunday; he supposed he’d just been too busy worrying about their relationship. Much as he didn’t want to make his partner sad, he couldn’t possibly disappoint his aunt. She had been the one to encourage him to be artistic and try his hardest to achieve his dreams. Whilst it was true that the cleaner decided his dreams were impossible, it had been great to have someone to support him.  
The slender man hoped that Hyunwoo didn’t feel too upset about their not meeting up. It was usually the businessman’s own commitments that prevented them from seeing each other--in a way Minhyuk hoped this would make his lover realise what it was like to be in his position. If the cleaner was the paranoid type he’d have started worrying that Hyunwoo was having an affair by now, considering the amount of time the businessman was at work or out of his apartment. But he knew Hyunwoo wasn’t the type to do that.

On Sunday, as he drove out of the city and towards his old town, Minhyuk’s worries and guilt continued to weigh on his mind. By the time he reached his aunt’s house, he’d decided that to make up to his boyfriend he would cook him a nice dinner one night--but it would be a surprise to the other man.

 

For Hyunwoo, Sunday was slow and boring. Without Minhyuk, life reverted back to how it had been before the cleaner had ever been there: mundane and somewhat depressing. The businessman shopped for groceries in a daze and went about all the other mind-numbing tasks he had to do as though he were on auto-pilot. He even started to clean--until the smell of cleaning product reminded him of his lover and he ended up moping even more.

Monday morning rolled around and Hyunwoo found himself daydreaming at his desk. There were a pile of forms waiting to be filled in, some documents to draw up--but the businessman was too busy missing his lover to really notice. He hadn’t heard from Minhyuk since the weekend: the cleaner hadn’t called at all on Sunday, or replied to any of the messages Hyunwoo had sent him.  
It was midday before the businessman snapped out of it. Reverie disturbed by the ring of his phone, he flipped it open to find a voicemail message from his lover.  
‘Hey Hyunwoo, looking forward to seeing you on Saturday. Are you free anytime before then? Sorry I didn’t call over the weekend, the battery on my phone died and I’d forgotten the charger. Can’t wait to see you. Call me, won’t you? Love you.’  
The message put Hyunwoo in a better mood; lunch made him feel more like his usual self again and by the end of the day the businessman seemed so cheerful that nobody could have guessed how moody he’d looked earlier that day.

 

As the week rolled slowly by, Minhyuk eagerly counted the days until he’d see Hyunwoo. Much to his disgust he’d not been able to meet with his partner at all during the week - Hyunwoo’s client had called with some extra requirements, which had thrown the whole team into overdrive as they worked to incorporate them into the original plan without changing their current targets and deadlines. Hyunwoo had moaned about this over the phone to his lover--it had taken him two hours and a very big headache to organise this change.  
Minhyuk hoped his surprise for the businessman would not only make up for his absence last weekend, but also the stressful week his lover was having.

 

Sitting at his desk, Hyunwoo worked furiously at the documents on his computer screen. It was Saturday, the next deadline was in three days time, and due to two staff members calling in sick, the team were dangerously close to falling behind schedule. The missing team members only had a little work to complete, but it was enough to send Hyunwoo into a panic over finishing on time. If the rest of his team weren’t all working away as hard as he was, the businessman would have delegated the extra work to others, but as it stood his co-workers were also busy rushing to meet the deadline.  
Hyunwoo glanced at the clock and realised in horror that normal office hours had already passed. On a regular day he wouldn’t be so worried: he’d just pick up food on the way home and eat late. Except after work today he’d scheduled some Minhyuk Time; the cleaner was going to order in some food and they were going to watch a movie--and Hyunwoo would stay with his partner overnight.  
This time around, the businessman was really torn. On the one hand he had Minhyuk - who he didn’t want to let down - yet on the other there was work and a rather important deadline that would affect the entire project if it wasn’t met--and leave Hyunwoo having to deal with unhappy clients and angry managers.  
Grimacing, Hyunwoo picked up the phone and dialled his boyfriend’s number.

“Hyunwoo, hey. Are you finished?”  
“Ah...no...”  
“You’re not?” there was a note of disappointment in the other’s voice.  
Hyunwoo sighed. “I’m going to be late, Minhyuk. I’m sorry.”  
“It can’t be helped. How late do you think you’ll be? Because I should probably take Saya for a walk at some point...”  
“I’m not sure...” the businessman glanced over his papers. There was still Monday to work on them, he supposed. “I guess maybe forty-five minutes to an hour? Is that too late for you?”  
“No, not at all...” the cleaner suppressed a sigh. How typical was it that Hyunwoo was basically standing him up for work?  
“Okay. I’ll bring some sake for us,” the businessman promised. “But now I should get on with this or I’ll be even later!”  
“Sure. Bye for now.”  
Minhyuk hung up before his boyfriend could respond. He was annoyed that Hyunwoo was going to be delayed. Although he knew the other man needed to get his work done and was dedicated to his job, the cleaner felt underappreciated and just a little unloved. Why did Hyunwoo always insist on doing overtime, after all? It wasn’t as if he couldn’t pass the work on to someone else, or adjust the deadlines again--or even better, inform his client that due to their new requirements, the overall deadline would be later than estimated. Yet Hyunwoo always claimed he couldn’t do any of that: the rest of the team had too much work to do, the deadlines couldn’t be adjusted any further, and since the client was new he had to make them happy.  
The cleaner glanced over at the stove, where dinner was cooking. At present it looked alright, he decided, but in ten minutes he’d have to turn the heat down a little since Hyunwoo was going to be late.  
He hoped his lover would enjoy the food. It had taken a good part of the afternoon to prepare it all because it was something the cleaner hadn’t cooked before. Minhyuk hoped his efforts wouldn’t be destroyed in the time it took for his partner to arrive.

 

Heaving a sigh of relief, Hyunwoo saved the work on his computer and set three documents in his Out-tray. Though there were still a few things to finish, he was certain he could do them on Monday morning, before starting on the next stage of work.  
Looking up from his desk, the businessman realised that the rest of the team had already left for the evening. As his eyes swept around the office, he caught sight of the time and let out a groan. Forty-five minutes had been a major underestimation. By the time he reached Minhyuk’s apartment, he’d be a whole hour and a half late.

 

Minhyuk was in a fury. Dinner was spoiled, he was tired of waiting, and he hadn’t heard a thing from Hyunwoo since the man first called to say he’d be delayed. After all his planning to make it a great evening for his partner and his anticipation over seeing Hyunwoo again, the evening was already ruined.  
Sensing her human’s mood, Saya had padded into the bedroom and curled up, keeping out of the way.  
When the doorbell finally rang, the cleaner practically stomped to the door, wrenched it open and turned away the moment he saw Hyunwoo standing the other side. “You finally decided to show up then,” he said grumpily, stomping back into the apartment.  
Hyunwoo followed, being sure to close the door behind him. As he walked inside, he caught the scent of something burnt and wondered what it was. “I’m sorry; those papers took longer than I thought they would.”  
“You’re always sorry!” Minhyuk snapped, wheeling around. “And you’re always delayed or unable to do anything because of your damn work!”  
“But I can’t help it, Minhyuk...” Hyunwoo felt a little bewildered at the intensity of the other’s anger. “Once the project is over--”  
“You’ll get another, and dedicate yourself so much to it that you forget about me, again,” the cleaner growled.  
“You’ve always known the situation with my workload, ever since we’ve known each other,” Hyunwoo replied incredulously. “Dammit Minhyuk, if this was such an issue why did you ask me out? Or why didn’t you say something before?”  
“I asked you out because I liked you, why else?!” Minhyuk was yelling now. “And I’ve told you that we don’t see enough of each other.”  
“And I tried my best to make it better!” Hyunwoo shouted back in reaction. “What more can I do?”  
“Well you can stop putting work before me for a start!”  
“What, you expect me to risk missing important deadlines and losing my job just because you want to meet for coffee? You’ve lost your grip on reality!”  
“Don’t say that! You won’t lose your job just because you stick to normal working hours! You’re just a coward,” Minhyuk retorted.  
“You really haven’t got a clue how it works in my industry do you?” Hurt, the businessman glared. “It’s no wonder you never amounted to anything more than a lowly cleaner! Your parents must be so ashamed!”  
Minhyuk’s expression changed from anger to agony and Hyunwoo bit his tongue harshly inside his own mouth, the cruelty of his words sinking in.  
“Get out,” the cleaner whispered shakily.  
Only now did the businessman identify the burnt smell as that of food and notice the cooking pots on the stove. Only now did he see how the cleaner had dressed himself in the shiny leather pants and a soft silk shirt left half unbuttoned to give flashes of his beautiful collarbones. Minhyuk, he realised, had wanted to make the evening special. Hyunwoo gulped. “Minhyuk, I-”  
“Leave. I don’t want to see you again,” the slender man looked away, eyes stinging.  
“I-I’m sorry, I--”  
“Go away!” Minhyuk bellowed and shoved Hyunwoo towards the door. The businessman tripped over, catching himself before falling and looking up at his lover in disbelief. Minhyuk simply turned his back. “Shut the door on your way out,” he ordered.  
“Min...” Knowing it was no use trying to talk now, Hyunwoo scrambled to his feet and left the apartment, shutting the door quietly behind him.  
Hearing the click of the latch, Minhyuk heaved a shaky sigh. He’d never imagined he and Hyunwoo would end up arguing in such a way; after the businessman spoke such unkind and heartless words - knowing why Minhyuk had been unable to achieve his dreams - the cleaner was half-serious when he’d said he never wanted to see him again.  
Heart aching, Minhyuk padded into his bedroom and fell onto the bed, hugging his stuffed toy tiger to his chest and trying not to cry.  
As far as he was concerned, whatever was between Hyunwoo and himself was over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for 200 kudos ♥


	14. 14

Hyunwoo was a wreck by the time he reached his apartment. The moment Minhyuk had told him to leave he’d felt like something had been wrenched out of his soul; in its place was nothing but a gaping, black hole.  
Flopping down on the sofa without even removing his shoes or jacket, the businessman came to realise he was still clutching the bottle of soju he’d stopped to buy on his way over to see his partner--if he could still call Minhyuk that.  
Opening the bottle, Hyunwoo took a swig straight from it, screwing up his face as he swallowed and letting out a soft sigh. How could he have been so awful to the one he loved most?  
Fighting against his pain, the businessman picked up the phone and called Minhyuk, but gained no answer.  
With a sigh, Hyunwoo took a longer drink from the bottle. His stomach rumbled, but he didn’t feel like eating. Without Minhyuk, he felt he would fall apart at any moment.

 

Days passed and Hyunwoo only felt worse. He went about his daily routine automatically, more like a robot than a living, breathing human being. Despite resenting his job for the fact it had caused his and Minhyuk’s separation, the businessman couldn’t bring himself to go home at the end of the day--and as a result, was working more overtime than ever. He ate dinner in cheap noodle restaurants, reaching his apartment in time to crawl to bed and fall into uneasy sleep. Hyunwoo and his team were meeting their deadlines with ease: because he was working so much longer, the businessman had already completed a great deal of work and was even taking on some of the workload from other team members (who were - in light of another deadline looming on the horizon - rather glad of it).  
The businessman was overworked, yet by the looks of things his team would complete the whole project before the deadline. When he re-estimated the schedule he found they could expect to finish within a mere two weeks.  
Yet it no longer mattered. His managers would be happy, as would the client, but Hyunwoo wasn’t happy himself--not without Minhyuk. He used to feel a buzz of accomplishment when he did well at work; now he felt nothing but apathy.  
Since their argument, the businessman had tried to contact Minhyuk multiple times. Yet his calls and messages remained unanswered; when he went to the other’s apartment there was no reply other than the faint sound of Saya’s barking on the other side of the door.  
It was obvious that the cleaner was avoiding him.

When he reached home that evening, Hyunwoo found the old notebook set in the middle of the kitchen table, a new note written within. Eager to read it and hopeful that Minhyuk would have left a note saying he was ready to talk things over, the businessman hurried to the table to see what was written.  
What he read struck Hyunwoo’s heart cold.  
 _‘I quit.’_

 

It had been hard for Minhyuk to leave the note. It was the first time since their argument that he’d been anywhere near Hyunwoo’s apartment and he only went there because it was his job to do so. After cleaning the rooms for the last time and trying hard to keep his composure, the cleaner had written the note. The contract between them was over--just as they were.  
Once he reached home for the evening Minhyuk wondered if he should have written more. Yet he hadn’t wanted to appear soft or emotional. Deep within, the cleaner knew he would take Hyunwoo back if he could, but he simply couldn’t bear that Hyunwoo held work more importantly than him. Hyunwoo knew how Minhyuk felt when it came to how much he worked, but in Minhyuk’s eyes, the man hadn’t done anything to solve it.  
The cleaner continued to wonder why: why the businessman couldn’t have spared more time for him, why they couldn’t have worked something out before it all got too much, why Hyunwoo seemed so oblivious to the effect his overworking was having not just on himself but on their relationship--not that they had a relationship anymore.  
Minhyuk’s phone rang; checking the caller ID he saw it was Hyunwoo again. The cleaner growled to himself and rejected the call. Why wouldn’t the businessman get the message? He didn’t want to speak to him--he couldn’t speak to him, it would hurt too much. Tomorrow, the cleaner decided, he would go out and get a new SIM card. If Hyunwoo wasn’t going to stop calling him then Minhyuk would simply change his phone number - both mobile and home - so the businessman couldn’t contact him any longer. It broke the cleaner’s heart even further to make this decision, but he felt seeing or hearing from Hyunwoo would destroy him. After all, he still loved the man--he just couldn’t stand the thought of hearing the other’s voice and knowing they couldn’t go back to how they used to be.

 

Hyunwoo was shocked when he dialled Minhyuk’s home number only to hear a recorded message announcing that the number had been disconnected. Despite being tired, he’d rushed over to the other man’s apartment, abandoned his car at the side of the road (since yet again the guest parking spaces were full) and banged on the cleaner’s apartment door. But there was still no response other than a soft woof from Saya. It had worried Hyunwoo; made him scared that something bad had happened to Minhyuk. He tried to convince himself that if he caught a glimpse of the cleaner and could be convinced of his safety, he could go home. But it was untrue: if he saw Minhyuk, Hyunwoo knew he would find himself on his knees, begging the cleaner for forgiveness.  
The businessman waited outside for an hour, hoping to catch the other man--all in vain.  
Exhausted, Hyunwoo returned to his car and drove off.  
He could barely keep his eyes open on the drive home and nearly ran into other cars a few times. Finally reaching the parking lot of his apartment, the businessman switched off the ignition, rested his arms and head against the steering wheel--and promptly fell asleep.

 

Slumber did not come to Minhyuk easily, and he’d been suffering from this problem for days now. Hugging his toy tiger to his chest, he wondered if things might have been different if he hadn’t told Hyunwoo to leave. Perhaps he’d been wrong to shout so much; the businessman had needed his support but all he’d done was criticize him. Still, Hyunwoo had been late too many times, he’d said ‘sorry’ so often that the word had become meaningless. Minhyuk had grown tired of waiting all the time. Tears flowed silently down his cheeks as he thought back over the times they’d shared together. It had been good when they actually were together--it was the times they’d been apart that had been hard, and those outweighed their happy moments by far.

 

Cold and hungry, Hyunwoo awoke to find himself still in his car and aching all over. Checking in the rear-view mirror he found he had red eyes and the imprint of the steering wheel on his cheek. The businessman sighed. Today was Sunday: a week and a day since him and Minhyuk had argued. Hyunwoo wanted dearly to make it up to the other man, but how could he when Minhyuk had cut off contact?  
Returning to his apartment, Hyunwoo eyed the pile of post stacked messily on the table by the door. He’d have to deal with that later; first of all he really needed to eat.  
It was as he ate a meagre breakfast that Hyunwoo reached a new line of thinking: what if Minhyuk had changed his phone numbers on account of him? Did the cleaner really hate him now? The thought made the businessman want to cry. He knew he couldn’t blame Minhyuk if he really did hate him. He’d been unreasonably cruel when the man was only trying to express his frustration. Rather than shout and insult, instead Hyunwoo realised he should have stayed calm and talked to Minhyuk more kindly. He should have been more respectful of his lover’s feelings and should never have let work take precedence over their relationship. After all, paperwork was neither warm nor loving.  
Good as his job was, Hyunwoo had reached the conclusion that he’d rather have lost his job than Minhyuk. But he never realised how close he’d been to losing his partner until it was too late.

Finishing his breakfast, Hyunwoo did some washing up and reluctantly faced the post that had piled up over the course of the week. He got so annoyed with the amount of junk mail he was sent; it seemed no matter what he did he still ended up receiving it. Then a brainwave hit him: there was one way he could always contact Minhyuk...  
Grabbing a sheet of paper and a pen, the businessman sat down at the kitchen table and began to write, pouring his heart and soul into his words. It was difficult but Hyunwoo laid his thoughts and feelings bare: his immense love for the cleaner, each and every insecurity he’d felt, his apologies for not seeing how much he was hurting Minhyuk and how much he hated himself for it--everything. Once he was finished, he sealed the letter into an envelope, and wrote Minhyuk’s name and address on the front.  
Early Monday morning, before work, he grabbed the letter and headed to the post office.

 

It was midweek when the businessman’s letter reached Minhyuk’s mailbox. The cleaner recognised his ex-boyfriend’s handwriting immediately; he’d become so familiar with it through all the time they’d communicated via the notebook that he would have been able to pick it out from a sea of similar handwriting samples.  
However, the sight of the letter didn’t please him. Why wouldn’t Hyunwoo leave him alone to lick his wounds and heal? Minhyuk knew that the businessman had been to his apartment at the weekend--he’d been hiding quietly inside and had heard Hyunwoo’s soft calls through the door. He just hadn’t replied.  
Minhyuk didn’t want to read the letter. His first instinct was to rip it to shreds, then he reconsidered and decided burning it would be better: if he burnt it, there was no way he could stick the pieces together again if his resolve caved.  
Yet when he lifted his lighter to the paper, he found he couldn’t do it. Minhyuk stared at the envelope, wondering if maybe he was being too hard-hearted. But he couldn’t simply let Hyunwoo back into his life; even though the argument wasn’t all that much of a big one the issue behind it was. If they were lucky to see each other but once a week - which wasn’t enough - that was hardly a relationship. Minhyuk didn’t want a part-time boyfriend.  
Suddenly realising the lighter he was holding was becoming rather hot, Minhyuk yelped and dropped it on the table, sucking his scorched finger. Not knowing what else to do with the envelope he locked it away in a desk drawer. Then he took out the key and set it right on top of the bookcase, where he couldn’t see it. Out of sight, out of mind--he hoped.

 

The project deadline was upon them, and Hyunwoo’s team worked hard right up to lunchtime, when the final piece of work was completed. His co-workers breathed a sigh of relief; all that was needed was for the client company to approve it. A meeting had been arranged for the afternoon between the team and representatives from the client company. Hyunwoo had to focus very hard on reviewing the work with his team mates. If he didn’t concentrate, his mind began to wander and he lost track of what he was doing.  
Of course, over lunch time he’d forgotten all about his job. Sitting alone in the cafeteria, he’d stirred his overcooked noodles moodily and thought about the letter he’d sent to Minhyuk. Had the cleaner received it yet? He hadn’t had a reply, though he felt certain it was more than a good enough apology. But maybe his ex hadn’t even read it; perhaps he just threw it away without a second thought.  
Hyunwoo would have wondered that Minhyuk was never interested in him in the first place, and had played him as though it was a game, but he wouldn’t allow himself to consider it. Minhyuk had loved him as he loved Minhyuk. There was proof of that in the words the cleaner had said, the things he’d done, the way he’d held him--and the hurt that shone in Minhyuk’s eyes when they fought.  
Hyunwoo felt like the world’s biggest fool for letting the cleaner slip from his grasp.

Was there any way of contacting Minhyuk now? He couldn’t call or message him any longer since the cleaner’s number seemed not to be working. Writing hadn’t gained him a response, and of course Minhyuk had never answered the door when he’d gone to the cleaner’s apartment.  
As he walked towards the boardroom for the all-important meeting, Hyunwoo realised the only way he might be able to contact the cleaner: by calling the cleaning agency and asking for Minhyuk’s number. The agency had already assigned a new cleaner to tidy up Hyunwoo’s apartment, though they didn’t make the place seem as welcoming as Minhyuk had. Once more, the businessman’s home had become a cold and unfriendly residence. Calling the agency for Minhyuk’s number would be underhand and a little risky since Hyunwoo had no idea what reason Minhyuk had given for not wanting to clean for him anymore. Not to mention that they might not give him the other man’s number anyway. But it was worth trying--anything was worth trying so long as it gave Hyunwoo the chance of at least apologising to Minhyuk for all the wrong he’d done.  
Feeling the first spark of hope that he’d felt all week, the businessman straightened his suit jacket and stepped into the boardroom.

 

The meeting went as badly as it could have done. A team member was late - she’d been caught by a supervisor from another apartment who was trying to persuade her to transfer - and the representatives from the client company were even later.  
As the meeting commenced, the reps decided they weren’t at all pleased with any of the work Hyunwoo and his team had slaved over for the past few weeks. Following a phone call to the head of the client company, the representatives announced they were unhappy with how the project had gone and would be using a rival company in future.  
Hyunwoo’s heart had sunk at the announcement; he’d wanted to argue with the somewhat snooty reps, wanted to point out how hard he and his team members had been working to meet their requirements. He knew that - on the contrary to what the clients said - his team had created some fantastic work. Hyunwoo was certain that some of his team had produced the better work in this project than they had in their entire career. This businessman wanted to say all this and more, but he couldn’t grasp the right words and he realised it wouldn’t have helped anyway. He’d recognised the client representatives as difficult to please the moment they’d walked into the boardroom.  
The meeting came to an end. All he could do now was sit and watch everyone trail out: his team tired and disappointed, reps ignoring everyone, superiors with unreadable expressions upon their faces. Once the room was empty, Hyunwoo sighed quietly, slouching in the chair and covering his face with his hands. After the nightmare the project had caused - overwork, his and Minhyuk’s break-up, frustration and sadness - the clients weren’t happy. Hyunwoo should have been annoyed but he felt only disappointment. With another sigh, he stood up. His team were as disappointed as he was; as the project leader he felt it was his duty to give them a pep talk.  
Despite feeling useless he put on a brave face and headed back to the office, where the team were sitting around with long faces.  
Hyunwoo cleared his throat, looking around. They’d all worked so damn hard...  
“So that didn’t go as we hoped...” he began.  
“No shit,” one of his team mates grumbled.  
“Those guys were assholes,” muttered another.  
“They didn’t like what we produced,” Hyunwoo nodded, keeping his voice firm and even. “But I feel our work has been overlooked. We’ve been slaving over and together we’ve created a brilliant outcome. We followed their requirements, we didn’t complain when they told us they wanted more without changing the deadline, and we produced quality work that should have exceeded their expectations. So don’t feel disheartened. The client was hard to please and I pity the next company whose time they waste. You guys did a wonderful job.” Hyunwoo applauded them, the sound echoing feebly in the room until another person joined in, then another. Soon the whole team were congratulating each other on a job well done--even if the clients hadn’t been happy.  
“Let’s take a celebratory coffee break,” one of the team suggested, earning a cheer.  
Hyunwoo nodded. “You deserve it; go ahead okay? I have some calls to make.”  
He watched the team leave the office before turning to the pile of work brought back from the board room. What had been wrong about it? He flipped through the pages pensively. He supposed he’d never know.  
Rather than dwell on it, Hyunwoo turned his mind back to a far more important matter: Minhyuk. Not wanting to miss a moment’s chance to contact the cleaner, Hyunwoo rummaged through his desk drawer. The newspaper was still there bearing the cleaning agency’s number. Taking it out, he headed towards the door with the intention of going outside and calling.  
But before he even reached the door, someone else stepped through it: the company president.  
Surprised, Hyunwoo almost forgot to bow.  
“Son,” the president nodded. “I hear the project was unsuccessful.”  
“Yes sir, unfortunately the clients weren’t happy with the outcome,” Hyunwoo explained humbly.  
“So it would seem...” the older man looked at the pile of work on the desk. “Go home early, Son, but report to my office on Monday morning.”  
“Yes sir,” Hyunwoo nodded and bowed again, feeling he was being dismissed. His heart was in his shoes and he felt certain that - come Monday afternoon - he’d be out of a job.  
Collecting his coat and briefcase, the businessman headed home.

 

Hyunwoo hadn’t tried to contact Minhyuk for days. Initially the cleaner thought he’d be more at ease when the phone calls and attempted visits stopped, but since the businessman stopped trying Minhyuk felt worse. It didn’t help that he had nothing to do these days, or so it seemed. His time was spent walking Saya, staring blankly at the TV or hugging the tiger to his chest and wishing it was Hyunwoo.  
Had he made a mistake in cutting off contact? Maybe that letter had been important, more than just a bunch of meaningless apologies. What if, Minhyuk thought with terror, it was a suicide note?  
The thought very nearly made him leap up and wrench the letter out of the drawer, but he hesitated before he even reached the desk. That train of thought was absolutely ridiculous; Hyunwoo would never do something like that. Hyunwoo was the stubborn type, which was why Minhyuk was so surprised the letter had been his ex-boyfriend’s last attempt at contacting him.  
Again, the cleaner found himself wondering if refusing contact had been a huge error on his part.

 

Hyunwoo reached home and dumped his coat and briefcase aside, only stopping to extract the old newspaper. He was lucky to still have it; the only reason he hadn’t thrown it away was - at first - lack of time. But then he and Minhyuk had become closer and Hyunwoo had kept it in his desk for sentimental reasons.  
The businessman didn’t waste a moment and located the advertisement for the cleaning agency again. He was sure he had an invoice or a business card bearing the number somewhere but they were undoubtedly filed away. Dialling the number, Hyunwoo waited with baited breath for an answer.  
“Busy Bees Cleaning, how can I help?”  
“Ah, hello,” Hyunwoo stuttered. The woman that answered wasn’t the lady he’d spoken to before. “This is Son Hyunwoo speaking; I already have a contract with you but was hoping you could give me a direct contact number for one of your cleaners.”  
“It isn’t our policy to give the private information of our employees,” the woman stated mechanically.  
Hyunwoo sighed. “Listen, I already had the number, but my phone broke and I can’t retrieve it. It’s giving me a real headache to regain the hundred or so contact numbers I had...” It was a big lie but he hoped the woman wouldn’t see through it.  
“I see...” There was a sound of a keyboard tapping in the background. “Mr. Son, you say? So you would like to contact Mrs. Chae? She is listed here as your cleaner.”  
Hyunwoo blinked; he hadn’t heard of his new cleaner’s name until now--either that or he hadn’t paid attention. “No, I wanted to contact Minhyuk.”  
“Minhyuk?” the woman sounded confused, and there was more tapping. “There is no Minhyuk here.”  
Now it was the businessman’s turn to feel confused. “No Minhyuk? How about Lee Minhyuk?”  
Further tapping in the background. “No; the only male cleaners we have right now are Lim Changkyun and Yoo Kihyun.”  
“Oh...” Hyunwoo felt disappointed. Was the woman lying to him?  
“Ah, I checked our past employees. We did have a Lee Minhyuk, but he left us fairly recently.”  
“What?!” The businessman couldn’t believe his ears. “Do you have any contact number for him?” he asked desperately.  
“Only a mobile phone number,” the woman proceeded to announce the number in a clear voice. It was the cleaner’s old number; the one that no longer worked.  
“Thank you,” Hyunwoo tried not to sound disappointed.  
“You’re welcome. Have a nice day!”  
The businessman ended the phone call politely before letting out a scream of frustration. It was ironic that the woman wished him a nice day after all the bad things that had happened. He was alone and his life was falling apart.  
Hyunwoo threw himself on the couch, wondering how much worse it could get.  
His project had failed, he was going to get fired and would have to give up his apartment and his car--but worst of all reality had finally hit home: he would never be able to reach Minhyuk again.


	15. 15

Having given his entire life a great deal of thought, Minhyuk was beginning to wonder what had possessed him to quit his job. He could no longer recall if it was anger, despair, or sheer determination to prevent Hyunwoo from seeing him again. The unemployed cleaner supposed it was slightly due to cowardice too. He hadn’t wanted to tell his former agency why he didn’t want to clean one apartment because he’d been scared he’d have to explain what happened between Hyunwoo and himself--which could have cost him his job anyway. He was sure there had been a clause in his contract of employment about not becoming involved with clients.  
So he’d left the agency, confident he would be able to join another with ease. But he found it wasn’t so simple. A few weeks had passed and the work just wasn’t coming. None of the agencies he’d tried had been looking to recruit any more cleaners; he’d answered plenty of privately-placed advertisements only to gain rejection letters--if he got any reply at all.  
Was this karma? Was it divine retribution for his cutting off contact with Hyunwoo? Minhyuk couldn’t tell; the only thing he knew was that unless he found a job within a couple of weeks, he’d be in major financial trouble.  
In a moment of retrospection - stretched out on the sofa with his soft toy tiger hugged to his chest and Saya sitting nearby watching him dolefully - Minhyuk wished he could turn back the clock to his teens, and really make an effort to try to become an artist. His aunt had believed in him; it was his own self-belief that had let him down back then. Even if he had tried and failed, the important point would have been that he’d tried. If he’d failed, he’d be in the same profession as he was now: cleaning.  
Trying, Minhyuk was coming to realise, was what he should have done more of in the past. When it came to his former relationship with Hyunwoo, he decided he could have been a little more patient.

 

Monday morning, the alarm woke Hyunwoo rudely from a dream where he and Minhyuk had reconciled with each other. If that wasn’t enough, the moment he sat up to stop the incessant ringing, his phone began to ring in the alarm clock’s stead.  
Hyunwoo grabbed for it, hoping desperately that his dream had been precognitive and the caller was his former lover.  
“Hello?”  
“Sweetie!” Hyewon chirped down the phone.  
“Mum...” Hyunwoo was too tired to hide the disappointment from his voice. He’d spent the whole weekend moping around his apartment, trying to work out what he could do once he’d been fired--he’d even begun to check the job section of a local newspaper in the hope of finding something new.  
“You don’t sound too cheerful, Hyunwoo. Are you unwell?”  
“I’m fine...” the businessman replied. “I just woke up.”  
“Is that all? I can tell there’s more to it,” Mrs. Son’s voice took on a more motherly tone. “You haven’t had a fight with Minhyuk, have you?”  
“We fought, but that was ages ago,” Hyunwoo sighed. He didn’t want to get into a discussion with his mother about this. “Today I have to go to work and face the music over the fact our project failed. The clients weren’t happy, even though we worked so hard to do as they wanted.”  
“My poor boy. I’m sure it isn’t as bad as you think. You’ll come home tonight and wonder what on earth you were worrying about!”  
“I’m not so sure, Mama...”  
“Well I am! Listen Hyunwoo, you can do anything you set your mind to. And speaking of setting your mind to something, I wanted to ask for ideas...”  
Hyunwoo perched on the edge of his bed. “What kind of ideas?”  
“For your cousin’s wedding. Auntie and I are helping with the preparations.”  
“But the wedding isn’t until next year...”  
“It takes a long time to organise! Anyway, we were trying to come up with some themes, but you know how difficult your cousin is. He doesn’t like any of them! So maybe a suggestion from you would be more well-received.”  
The businessman rolled his eyes. “Doesn’t he have ideas of his own?” He wasn’t in the mood to talk about marriage.  
“Of course not, he’s as creative as a stone.”  
Hyunwoo sighed. “I’ll have a think about it and get back to you if I come up with something,” he promised. “Sorry Mum but I can’t talk any longer. I’ve got to get ready for work...”  
“Oh yes, you get up late don’t you? I forgot about that!” Hyewon chuckled. “Have a good day at work sweetie!”  
Hyunwoo cast a glance at the clock. Late? It was only quarter past six! “Thanks Mum. Hope you have a good day too. Bye for now...”  
“Goodbye Hyunwoo-sweetie. And send Minhyuk some flowers!”  
Hyunwoo shook his head as he hung up. His mother always had a way of knowing what was wrong, even if he didn’t admit it. But it was too late for flowers now--such a pity that his mother hadn’t called just after he and Minhyuk had fought.

With the prospect of the meeting with the company president hanging over his head, Hyunwoo hoped the time before going to work would last long, yet it seemed to go faster than usual. Before he knew it he was in the foyer of his office building.  
Dread weighing upon his shoulders, he began the long walk up the stairs to the top floor where the president’s office was. He could have taken the elevator, but wanted to prolong the time he had before the inevitable.  
“Go right in,” the secretary said when he identified himself.  
“Thank you...” Gulping, Hyunwoo knocked on the office door before turning the handle and stepping inside, head bowed.  
“Son, good morning,” the president greeted him seriously.  
“Good morning,” Hyunwoo bowed; only as he looked up did he realise he faced not just the president but his immediate supervisor and the managers of each department. He swallowed again.  
“Sit down,” one of the managers motioned to the chair set before them.  
Quaking in his boots, Hyunwoo sat, partially glad of the demand because he wasn’t sure that his legs could hold him up much longer.  
The president eyed him thoughtfully for what Hyunwoo felt was hours. “We all know how disappointingly last week ended,” he finally began.  
“Yes sir,” Hyunwoo replied in a hollow voice. His luck had run out in the company, it seemed. He supposed he couldn’t have expected to last long when it was only because of his father that he had the job in the first place.  
“However,” continued the president. “When we gained the contract with that particular client, we were well aware of how difficult to please the company was. It was our decision to hand the responsibility of the project to you.”  
Hyunwoo swallowed once again. “Yes sir,” he replied quietly.  
“Through the duration of the project you asked for more team members than were allocated, you adjusted the schedule and work timetables several times, and both you and your team worked extra hours on a great number of days. You also refused to work overtime to help with another project.”  
“...yes sir...”  
“In light of this - and I’ll have you know we have been keeping watch on your progress for quite a while now - I have been forced to make a decision, supported by those you see here before you.”  
Hyunwoo couldn’t do anything other than stare at the president.  
“Son, we’re promoting you to supervisor of your department.”  
The businessman blinked. “Pardon?” He looked over at his supervisor. He must have misheard! The man was right there, he couldn’t take his job!  
“I’m leaving at the end of the month,” the supervisor explained.  
“Yes, I’m afraid he’s been poached away by a rival company,” the president smiled kindly at Hyunwoo. “You stand your ground when coming up against problems, you work hard, you know how to motivate a team and help them deal with disappointment. When you found scheduling issues, you fixed them, and you weren’t afraid to work hard to produce something outstanding. You’re just what this company wants in this position.”  
“T-thank you sir.” Hyunwoo was in a state of disbelief. He’d walked in expecting to get fired, and now he was being promoted? What kind of weird, alternate reality had he woken up in?  
“I assume you’ll take the job?”  
“Sorry? Um, yes! Of course!” Hyunwoo smiled shakily, still a little bit confused and taken aback. “Thank you!”  
“Excellent. My secretary will discuss the details with you.”  
Everyone stood, and Hyunwoo hurried to do so as well, bowing reverently. His mother had been right: there was nothing to worry about.

 

Hyunwoo entered his shared office with mixed feelings and sat down quietly at his desk. His co-workers were all hard at work and didn’t really notice that he was late.  
The perks of being supervisor were a hundred times better than his current position. He was paid more, for working fewer hours. Generally, as a supervisor, he could knock off work earlier; he had the entire weekend off rather than just Sunday and more holiday time. Of course, the promotion gave him more responsibility but the important part was that he’d earned it. He’d proved his worth within the company.  
All he had to do now was keep quiet about it until the company officially announced his promotion and the supervisor’s departure.  
As he sat there thinking about the surprising morning, Hyunwoo wished he could tell someone. Grateful as he was, the promotion didn’t seem as exciting since he couldn’t share it. He supposed he could tell his parents, but considering how much his mother could gossip the whole country would find out overnight. And what would he do with all that extra free time? It wasn’t as though he had anyone to go home to.  
The promotion was good: Hyunwoo’s logic told him this. But as he sank back into the despairing mood he’d been in over the weekend, his heart cried out that a promotion meant nothing if he didn’t have anyone to share it with.  
Despite all that had happened between them, the businessman felt a natural desire to share his news with Minhyuk--if he could reach him.

 

When Hyunwoo arrived home that evening, he sat down with a cup of coffee and mulled over the day. So he’d got a promotion. He knew he should be over the moon.  
But there was only one thing that would make him happy, and that was Minhyuk.  
The businessman sighed to himself and picked up the newspaper. He’d left it open at the job section, and it was this that Hyunwoo stared at for several long moments, an idea forming in his mind.

 

Saya trotted through the park, tail wagging happily as she sniffed here and there, finding all kinds of interesting scents. She’d been getting a lot of walks recently and every time Minhyuk took her out she seemed to be even happier.  
The former cleaner envied his pet. Life seemed simple for dogs; they were fed and cleaned up behind, they got to play games and sniff around parks...  
Pulling a tennis ball from his pocket, Minhyuk whistled for his dog. Saya immediately ran towards him, her tail wagging furiously as she spotted the ball. The cleaner threw it across the grass for her and went to sit on a bench, watching as she bounded after it.  
As he relaxed against the bench, he remembered the times he’d walked Saya with Hyunwoo, and a wave of sadness swept over him. If only they’d had more time together...  
Though he’d been trying hard not to think of Hyunwoo and not to wish they were still together, Minhyuk missed the other man. Thoughts kept sneaking in, memories and longing crept up on him when he wasn’t paying attention.  
Saya brought the ball back to him and Minhyuk threw it half-heartedly. He wished with all his heart that things had turned out differently between Hyunwoo and himself.  
Watching his dog race around the park, Minhyuk worried. He still hadn’t found a job and his savings were lasting an even shorter amount of time than he thought they would. Still, he tried to remain positive about this. There were plenty of jobs around; it was actually getting employed that was the difficult part.

 

Hyunwoo’s next few days at work were a little hectic. Although the project was completed he had to attend a couple of review meetings to decide where it could have been improved and what the clients hadn’t liked. The latter question was hard to answer, since the representatives’ criticisms had been for things the client had set in stone. In the end, Hyunwoo - along with his supervisor and team mates - put it down to a miscommunication of requirements. Hyunwoo also had to prepare for his promotion; his supervisor was training him to take over his position. During their training sessions, the businessman discovered that his supervisor was a fairly nice man--not in the least the disapproving, grumpy person Hyunwoo used to think he was.  
In a way, the businessman supposed life was beginning to look better, though that didn’t stop him wishing Minhyuk was still around.

 

Whilst Hyunwoo’s career was thriving, Minhyuk’s hadn’t progressed one inch. Sitting down at the table, the cleaner began to flick through the local newspaper. Somewhere after the births, marriages and deaths was a small section of job advertisements--and he hoped at least one of them would suit his skills and experience.  
Minhyuk was relieved to see there were a number of ads for cleaners this time - a role he certainly had the ability to fulfil. He circled them all with a red marker--and then one in particular caught his eye.  
‘ **Cleaner Wanted**  
_Artistic flair and compassion for animals (especially dogs and tigers) essential. Must be able to wash clothes and dishes, make beds, clean floors, dust shelves, wash up (and only break the occasional glass) and most importantly accept sincerest of apologies and offer of a dinner date.’_  
Contact Son Hyunwoo’  
There was no number--but there didn’t need to be. Minhyuk understood exactly why the ad was in his paper: Hyunwoo was going as far as he could to try and contact him. Clearly the other man wanted to make amends.  
The advertisement made the cleaner wonder what had been written in the letter and without thinking, he brought it out of the drawer and began to read.  
By the time he had finished, Minhyuk felt terrible. His former lover had poured his heart out yet he’d ignored it. How could he dare crawl back to Hyunwoo after that? If he did, he would have to apologise until the end of time. But on the other hand, could they be together again and have a chance at happiness? They’d still have problems with time--or lack, thereof.  
Despite his worries, for the first time in ages Minhyuk felt warm inside. It was Hyunwoo’s words that had caused that feeling, which the former cleaner supposed had to count for something.

 

Hanging up on the third heavy breather that day, Hyunwoo let out a growl of frustration. He was starting to regret placing an ad in the paper. It had been his last, desperate attempt at contacting Minhyuk, one final try to win the man’s heart--and despite not including his telephone number, he’d still received a bunch of weird phone calls in response. It seemed people were able to see rather nefarious undertones to his advert and were interested enough to go to the length of looking him up in the telephone directory. But what was the use if Minhyuk hadn’t seen it? Although the man may well have seen it--and either not understood the meaning, or not cared.  
Hyunwoo had played with the idea of placing an ad on TV, but decided against it. It was far too high-profile and public, and there was a smaller chance Minhyuk would see it--not that there was a huge chance the cleaner would have seen the advert in the paper either. It was a stab in the dark, but the businessman seriously hoped it worked.  
The phone rang again and he let out a sigh.  
“Son residence...” he answered warily.  
“Good evening. I’ve called about the ad in the paper.”  
Hyunwoo’s heart leapt. “Minhyuk?”  
“I saw the ad--and I read your letter...”  
“Oh God...” the businessman sat down. “Minhyuk, I am so sorry for everything I said that night. It was so unfair of me and I still can’t believe I was so impulsive, and stupid, saying what I didn’t even mean....”  
“You wrote that. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have been so angry.”  
“You had every right to be!”  
“Still...” Minhyuk sighed. “I called because of the ad...”  
“Yes… let me make it up to you. I want you back, more than anything. I want to take you out more and see you much more often…”  
“But you didn’t have time before. That’s my only concern...”  
Hyunwoo took a breath. “See, that’s the thing...”  
At the other end of the line, Minhyuk’s doorbell rang. “Just a moment Hyunwoo, someone’s at the door.”  
The former cleaner set down the receiver and padded to the front door to find a florist delivery driver standing the other side holding a bouquet of red roses.  
“Lee Minhyuk?” The driver checked his clipboard.  
“Yes?”  
“Sign here please,” the man held out the clipboard, an x marked at the space where Minhyuk had to sign.  
The slender man signed quickly and found the bouquet thrust into his arms. There was a note attached, and as he closed the apartment door again he read it.  
‘Red roses: my love for you runs deeply. Sincerely, Hyunwoo’  
Minhyuk picked up the phone again. “Thank you for the flowers...”  
“You’re welcome. You deserve a whole garden of them considering all the things you did for me.”  
The former cleaner couldn’t help but smile. “Only because you paid me.”  
“I never paid you to love me, though...” Hyunwoo replied softly.  
“But I couldn’t help it. I fell for you hard, Hyunwoo; that’s why it hurt so much whenever we were apart, or when our plans were messed up because of your job.” Minhyuk’s heart felt easier talking to the businessman again. As time had passed since their argument, he could express himself more calmly.  
“It hurt me, too. But things are changing with my job. I always hated that it kept us apart and I would never put it ahead of you again, if you gave me a second chance.”  
“How do I know that?” Minhyuk didn’t like to ask, but he had to else it would keep bothering him.  
“You would have to trust me...”  
Minhyuk was silent for a few seconds, thinking. Something seemed amiss with what Hyunwoo had said. “When you said things are changing with your job, what did you mean?”  
“It’s kind of secret at the moment...” the businessman began. “But at the end of the month, I’ll become a supervisor.”  
“That’s great!” The former cleaner smiled to himself, glad for Hyunwoo but wishing he had such luck himself.  
Hyunwoo sighed. He was wasting valuable time here. “Minhyuk, I must confess. I don’t need a cleaner...”  
“Oh.” Minhyuk was surprised and a little confused. What was Hyunwoo trying to tell him with that ad?  
“I don’t need a cleaner because what I need more than anything is a boyfriend.”  
“A boyfriend...”  
“Would you like to apply?” the businessman’s voice was hopeful.  
Minhyuk hesitated. “Is it... full time? Would I actually see you?”  
“Of course! Much more. That’s what’s good about my promotion: I get more time off. I can finish work earlier; I have the entire weekend free, and get more holiday time...” Hyunwoo held the phone a little tighter, voice becoming tense. “If that isn’t enough then you could always take up a live-in position... If you wanted to.”  
There was silence on the line as Minhyuk absorbed the information the businessman had just babbled at him.  
“...Hyunwoo, are you asking me to move in with you?” there was a note of surprise in Minhyuk’s tone.  
“Are you accepting the position?”  
“I don’t know...”  
The businessman’s heart sank. His offer didn’t seem to be enough. Calls, letters, ads in the paper--even following his mother’s advice and sending flowers. It wouldn’t help him regain Minhyuk’s heart.  
“What about Saya?” the former cleaner’s voice broke the quiet. “And Hyunwoo, I couldn’t afford to pay even a third of the rent on that apartment, as it stands I’m struggling to pay my own since I don’t have a job right now.”  
“It doesn’t matter,” Hyunwoo replied, taking a shaky breath. “Saya could come too. As for rent, don’t worry! I get paid more than enough to cover it.”  
“But I couldn’t move in and not contribute...”  
“We could discuss it again when you find a job. Us living together is the only way I can think of where we could spend as much time together as possible and I love the thought of living with you, so it really doesn’t matter if you pay anything towards the rent or not. I love you and I want to be with you more than anything, so please at least say you’ll think about it?”  
“I...” Minhyuk sighed. At some point during the conversation his legs had turned to jelly and he was now sitting on the couch feeling as though a thousand butterflies were fluttering in his stomach.  
“I promise you, it would be fantastic...” Hyunwoo didn’t sound so sure of himself; it was clear his hope was fading.  
The former cleaner smiled to himself. “I accept.”  
“Oh...” The businessman had been so busy preparing himself for disappointment that it took a moment for the message to go through to his brain. “...you do? Minhyuk…! I’m so happy…”  
“It’s your persuasion that works so well,” the former cleaner replied softly. “I’ve missed you...”  
They spent the next hour or so talking on the phone like they would have done in the past. Only this time around, all their little worries - both about their relationship and living together - were brought forth, talked over, and resolved.  
Another hour later they were together again, curled up on Minhyuk’s old stripy sofa in silent bliss.

 

Hyunwoo reached home with a smile on his face. Today was the six month anniversary of Minhyuk moving in with him, so he’d left work early and headed home. Later that evening, the two of them would go out for dinner.  
Saya greeted him the moment he stepped through the door, licking his hand and wagging her tail before padding off through the living room. A rather chewed up trainer lay in the middle of the floor and Hyunwoo smiled a little--the shoe had been ‘given’ to Saya and ever since she’d not chewed on anything else.  
Hyunwoo found that his lover was home already, seated at the kitchen table. Resting his hands on the slender man’s shoulders, Hyunwoo bent down to kiss his partner’s cheek before studying what Minhyuk was working on.  
“Looks good,” he admired the lines traced in black ink on slightly textured paper.  
“Thanks. How was work?”  
“Boring, so I came home,” Hyunwoo grinned and winked, starting to make some coffee.  
Minhyuk smiled at his lover and set down his paintbrush. With Hyunwoo’s encouragement, he’d enrolled on an art course and he’d been painting a picture of Saya in Indian ink for an assignment.  
Surprisingly, his work had been well-received, and he’d already managed to sell a few canvases. Sometimes he missed cleaning, but art really did seem to be his true calling.  
“I suppose if you came home from work due to being bored, I ought to provide some entertainment,” he purred, slinking across the kitchen.  
Hyunwoo turned just in time to catch him in his arms, and smiled fondly at him. “I suppose you should...”  
Minhyuk grinned and drew his lover towards the bedroom. It seemed destiny to him that the two of them were brought together by a cleaning advertisement. Granted, Minhyuk wasn’t a cleaner anymore but by the expression in Hyunwoo’s eyes whenever the businessman looked at him, he was certainly wanted.  
As for Hyunwoo, his dream had been achieved and life couldn’t be better: he had a good job, trendy apartment, a great car--and most importantly of all, Minhyuk to go home to.


End file.
